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UNIVERSITY  OF 

ILLINOIS  LIBRARY 

AT  URBANA-CHAMPAIGN 

ICLfNOlS  HISTORICAL  SURVEY 


3(^^,1         .'op.  Uk^-^^z ^' 

! 

Complete  History  of  Southern 
Illinois'  Gang  War. 

The  True  Story  of  Southern  Illinois  Gang  War- 
fare.    Written  Entirely  by  E.  Bishop  Hill 

*WE  DARE  YOU  TO  READ 
THE  FIRST  FIVE  PAGES.' 

All  that  is  written  herein  is  actual  facts  that  hap- 
pened during  the  Ku  Klux  Klan  and  Anti-Klan  War  in 
:  ..Little  Egypt  and  during  the  time  of  S.  Glenn  Young 
}>    to  the  trial  of  Charles  Birger  in  the  year  1927  A.  D. 

This  material  is  carefully  compiled  and  is  given 
in  print  so  the  public  in  general  may  know  in  full  the 
details  surrounding  that  terrible  period  of  bloodshed 
in  "Bloody  Williamson"  from  the  Herrin  Massacre  to 
the  end  of  the  reign  of  "Machine  Gun  Charlie"  Birger. 

E.  BISHOP  HILL, 

Eldorado,  Illinois. 


'  CHAPTER  1. 

S.  GLENN  YOUNG,  Raider. 

There  is  hardly  a  nook  or  corner  of  the  entire 
United  States  where  the  name  of  S.  Glenn  Young  is 
not  known. 

Many  are  the  tales  told  of  marvelous  gun  plays, 
and  his  ability  to  always  come  out  with  a  new  notch 
on  his  gun.  There  is  hardly  a  household  the  country 
over  wiiere  stories  have  not  been  told  of  his  deeds  of 
aaring.  His  ability  to  draw  first  has  been  illustrated, 
mayLe  magnified,  by  many  hundreds  of  verified  and 
unveriiied  stories. 

Ever  since  S.  Glenn  Young  made  his  advent  in 
Williamson  County,  Illinois,  there  has  hardly  been  a 
gathering  of  any  sort  w^here  his  activities  did  not 
iurnish  the  chief  topic  of  conversation.  Each  time 
the-  name  was  mentioned  some  one  always  had  a  new 
story  to  tell  of  som.ething  he  had  said  or  done. 

One  interesting  story  comes  to  mind  regarding  the 
raider's  ability  to  draw  his  gun  first.  It  is  told  that 
one  time  while  the  City  of  Herrin,  Illinois,  was  re- 
covering from  the  shock  of  an  outbreak,  during  which 
the  state  troops  were  called  out  that  Young  was  walk- 
ing down  the  street,  clad  in  common  civilian  clothes. 
There  was  nothing  about  his  appearance  that  would 
lead  one  to  believe  he  carried  any  of  the  traditional 
artillery  that  has  made  him  famous.  One  of  the 
guardsmen  met  and  asked  him  if  he  did  not  feel  a  bit 
uneasy,  going  about  the  streets,  among  enemies,  un- 
arme:!. 

"Start  for  your  gun,  sonny,"  the  raider  said,  and 
the  guardsman  reached  quickly  for  his  gun.     Before 

2 


the  soldicrr  could  bring  the  weapon  from  its  liolster  at 
his  side  Young  had  him  covered  with  two  guns. 

And  such  were  the  stories  of  the  life  of  S.  Glenn 
Young  until  the  time  he  "bit  the  dust"  as  he  had  seen 
so  many  do  who  had  failed  to  beat  him  to  the  draw. 

The  writer  knows  Young  to  have  been  a  fearless 
man  and  one  who  could  draw  a  gun  in  the  time  it 
would  take  one  to  wink  an  eye. 

S.  Glenn  Young  to  his  admirers  was  a  dauntless 
crusader  who  feared  neither  man  nor  the  devil  in 
fighting  sin  such  as  he  found  it  in  and  around  Herrin. 
To  those  who  hated  him,  he  was  a  swashbuckling  inter- 
loper whose  own  violences  were  greater  than  the  crimes 
he  attempted  to  correct. 

Chapter  2  Deals  with  the  Manner  in  Which  Young 

Came  Into  Prominence  By  His  Daring  Work  in 

the  Employment  of  the  Government. 

CHAPTER  2. 

Glenn  Young  came  into  prominence  in  1917  when 
he  was  employed  in  running  down  desperate  draft 
evaders  for  the  Federal  government,  his  work  taking 
him  into  the  most  dangerous  districts  of  the  Kentuc'.iy 
foothills.  He  is  credited  with  capturing  hundreds  of 
desperate  characters,  and  many  was  the  time  he  used 
his  gun  and  shot  to  kill  in  carrying  out  the  orders  of 
nis  superiors. 

After  the  war  he  was  given  a  place  on  the  Federal 
prohibition  enforcement  forces,  and  again  he  was  as- 
signed to  one  of  the  most  dangerous  districts  in  the 
country.    For  some  two  years  he  kept  up  his  warfare 

3 


on  illicit  liquor,  and  up  until  he  was  dismissed,  when 
he  was  charged  with  the  murder  of  a  foreigner  whose 
home  he  raided  near  East  St.  Louis,  he  was  feared  by 
law-breakers  in  an  almost  unimaginable  way. 

Following  this  Young  dropped  out  of  prominence 
until  the  time  he  was  employed  by  the  Ku  Klux  Klan 
to  conduct  the  raids  in  Williamson  county.  He  started 
his  work  there  in  January,  1924,  and  ever  since  there 
has  been  a  vendetta  that  has  been  a  sensation  to  all 
America. 

The  writer  will  say  here,  that  the  Klan-Anti  Klan 
warfare  was  a  war  between  two  factions,  one  taking 
the  name  of  the  Klan  and  the  other  Anti-Klan  so  they 
were  distinguishable. 

The  Klan  forces  had  the  enmity  of  Sheriff  George 
Galligan  of  Williamson  county  and  former  State's  At- 
torney Delos  Duty  from  the  start  of  their  raiding 
activities,  and  it  was  between  these  two  factions,  the 
constituted  authorities  on  one  side  and  the  citizens 
who  wanted  a  cleanup  of  vice  on  the  other,  that  the 
relentless  warfare  was  carried  on. 

One  of  the  regrettable  occurrences  in  connection 
v/ith  the  whole  affair,  outside  the  actual  killings  that 
took  place  from  day  to  day,  was  when  the  automobile 
driven  by  Young  was  fired  upon  by  members  of  the 
anti-Klan  forces  as  it  passed  through  the  Okaw  bot- 
toms near  Belleville,  Illinois,  and  Mrs.  Young  who  was 
accompanying  her  husband,  was  wounded  for  life. 

It  is  said  that  there  are  nearly  thirty  notches  on 
Young's  gun,  indicating  that  he  has  killed  that  many 
persons. 

Ora  Thomas  was  the  greatest  enemy  Young  ever 
v/as  known  to  have  had.    Thomas  was  appointed  as  a 

4 


CHARLIE  BIRQER 


deputy  sheriff  under  Sheriff  Galligan  and  had  been 
one  of  Young's  most  bitter  foes  since  the  noted  raider 
entered  Williamson  county. 

Ora  Thomas  first  came  into  prominence  when  he 
was  made  one  of  the  principal  defendants  in  the  Herrin 
mine  war  suits,  he  having  been  charged  with  having 
taken  a  leading  part  in  the  wholesale  killings  of  the 
men  employed  at  the  Lester  strip  mine.  A  jury,  how- 
ever, exonerated  him  of  these  charges.  Thomas  was 
always  prominently  mentioned  in  all  the  encounters 
between  the  sheriffs  forces  and  Young's  raiders  since 
the  advent  of  the  notorious  raiding  forces  in  William- 
son county. 

Chapter  3  Deals  with  the  Death  of  S.  Glenn  Young. 

Much  was  Kept  Hidden  But  the  Main  Details  are 

Given  in  the  Description  Following. 

CHAPTER  3. 

On  the  night  of  January  24,  1925,  people  all  over 
the  United  States  talked  of  the  terrible  war  then 
going  on  in  Williamson  county  and  on  that  night  one 
of  the  most  terrible  battles  was  fought  in  the  main 
street  of  Herrin.  The  fight  in  which  S.  Glenn  Young 
died  was  incomparable  to  the  fights  told  in  story 
books  of  the  wild  west  and  the  frontier. 

It  was  near  10  o'clock  on  that  fatal  night  and 
the  war  of  the  Klan  and  its  enemies  had  been  going 
on  about  a  year.  S.  Glenn  Young  and  two  of  his  hench- 
men, Ed  Forbes  and  Homer  Warren,  and  Ora  Thomas, 
a  Williamson  county  deputy  sheriff,  were  killed. 

The  shooting  which  was  in  the  form  of  a  free-for- 
all  gun  battle,  took  place  in  front  of  the  European 

5 


moaj  s:^ot[s  ;saij  aq;  »ie;jB  uoos  pacldoap  Jounoj^ 

•pai^B:|.s  aaA{0A8a  Di:j.tiUiOT.ii^ 
aaqn^o  S^*  s.^pQ  b  i{oii{av  ui  ja|S[oq  eq;  jo  uio^^oq 
8q4  UI  a^oq  aq;  qSnoaq:^  s>[Baj;s  ui  Sui^jnds  aJij  aq; 
'unS  H  SuiMBJp  :|.noq;iAV  diq  siq  uiojj:  Suiaij:  '5uiu;u3i{ 
}0  paads  aq:^  q^i^v  a^iij  aq:^  pauani^aj  japi^j  sroijot 
-ou  aqjL  'Sunoj^  Aq  pa{  shav  qoiqM  pAVoao  Suiduha^.t? 
aq;  '\T8  Suuij  UBSaq  puB  sunS  oa\:^  Avajp  ay  'pus^s 
aBgp  B  puiqaq  aSnjaa  j[Oo:^  pun  ia;oq  aq;  o:^ui  uisi 
sBuioqj^  :^aaj:^s  aq:^  passojo  uaiu  siq  puB  Suno^  sy 

•p^ap  SHA\ 
jaq:^o  aq;  i^un  i^:^unoo  d\j[\  aA^a^  ;ou  pynoM  aq  4Bq;  pu^ 
jaq:^o  aq:^  ,<^aS„  o;  ujoavs  qo^a  p^q  s^uioqx  pu^  Sunox 
:^^q;  c^uauioui  siq;  :).b  ja:^iXM.  aq:^  o:^  pa^^oaj  si  :^i 
•Suno^  ^;\l^  ajaM  uam  uazop  auo  jna^  *:^no  Suhj  :^oqs 
•B  pip  i^aq:^  sb  pu^  SuipuB:^s  sbm  s^uioqx  ajaqA\  pj^Av 
-o;  :^aaj:^s  aq:^  ssojob  pa;aB:^s  sjaMoyyoj  siq  jo  auios  puB 
gunoj^  *nBi[  A'WD  aq;  uiojj  :;aaj|s  aq;  ssojdb  pu^  q;nos 
sy^oojq  om;  auios  ia;oH  UBadoJng;  aq;  jo  ;uojj  ui  Sm 
-puB;s  SBAV  SBUioqx  sb  ja^^i  sa;nuim  i^;Jiq;  ;noqy 

•aouajjnooo  uouiuiod  ts  st?a\  uaq; 
puB  A\ou  ;oqs  Xbj;s  y  'punoj  un.§  aq;  q;iAi  ubui  aq; 
SBA\  jou  {p^  oti  3^00;  ;oqs  aq;  pun  '-m  -d  o^'  6  ^noq^ 
SBA\  siqx  'V^^^J  SBAV  ;oqs  ;sjtj  aq;  ;Bq;  uaq;  shav  ;i 
puB  ;jno3  i^;!^  uujajj  aq;  jo  uoissas  ;qSm  ^  guiA^a^ 
ajaAv  sjaq;o  puB  uaMog  'jsi  '3  aSpnf  's^uioqx  ^JQ 

:  Sui{[i3f  aq;  SuiMonoj:  ;sanbui  aq;  ;b  ;no  UAVBjp  sba\ 
i^Jo;s  SuiMO[{oj  aq;  'aaAaMO;[j[  '-iI^JJ^  ^^']■  Jo  Suiq;oii 
A\au5j  ^aq;  paiuiBp  'anjBA  ;o  uoi;Bmjojiii  ;no  aAiS  o; 
uoi;isod  ;saq  aq;  ui  asoq;  puB  ;no  uaAiS  a.iaAV  saiJo;s  Sm 
-^;oi{juoD  AiiTSUi  ;Bq;  ajaq  uoi;uaui  {{ia\  ja;iJM  aqx 

•iniq  joj  pa;oajip 
uaaq  p^q  ;qgnoq;  aq  ;Bq;  pajij  uaaq  p^q  ;oqs  b  Ja;jH 
a?npj  ua^Tt?;  aA^q  o;  piBs  si  SBiuoqx  ^-^0  ^^i^qA^^  P^^H 

6 


Thomas'  gun  barked  from  behind  the  cigar  stand. 
Two  shots  had  struck  him  in  the  right  side,  causing 
almost  instant  death.    Thomas  also  fell. 

Warner  and  Forbes  dropped  in  turn,  althou^^h  the 
former  was  not  killed  instantly.  He  died  a  few  hours 
later  in  the  Herrin  Hospital.  Forbes'  death  was  in- 
stant. 

Ora  Thomas  had  been  shot  three  times  through 
the  head,  the  three  bullet  holes  through  his  skull  not 
being  more  than  an  inch  apart. 

Things  went  on  peaceful  in  Herrin  for  a  few 
hours  following  the  battle.  Then  as  the  news 
spread  and  crowds  began  pouring  into  the  city  from 
surrounding  cities,  there  was  every  indication  of  a  re- 
newal of  the  disorder. 

Klansmen  and  others  soon  filled  the  streets  and  many 
who  came  into  the  city  were  searched  for  weapons  for 
fear  they  might  be  part  of  an  avenging  force  that 
would  start  a  new  war.  Feeling  was  again  at  fever 
heat  and  the  business  of  keeping  a  closed  mouth  and 
going  one's  way  seemed  to  be  the  most  sensible  thing 
to  do. 

So  great  was  this  feeling  of  bitterness  that  it  was 
thought  necessary  to  ask  for  state  troops  and  the 
Headquarters  Company  at  Carbondale  was  soon  on 
its  w^ay  to  again  restore  peace  and  quiet  in  the  neigh- 
boring city.  This  made  the  third  time  within  a  period 
of  twelve  months  that  this  company  had  been  called 
for  duty  in  Herrin. 

S.  Glenn  Young  died  almost  instantly,  but  in  the 
short  time  he  lived  before  bridging  the  gap  into  Eter- 
nity, he  asked  if  Ora  Thomas  was  dead.  Those  around 
him  said  that  Thomas  had  died.  The  famous  raider 
gasped,  grinned,  and  as  he  died  said:    "I  die  in  peace." 

7 


Ora  Thomas  was  supported  by  friends  on  the  floor 
of  the  European  Hotel.  Life  had  been  sweet  to  him 
and  he  knew  it  was  leaving  him  rapidly  and  that  the 
end  was  near.  With  an  almost  super-human  effort 
he  said:  "Did  I  get  Young?"  When  he  was  assured 
that  S.  Glenn  Young  had  passed  into  the  great  beyond, 
he  said:  *'I  am  willing  to  die."  The  two  men  known 
for  thousands  of  miles  as  the  most  bitter  of  foes,  died 
at  almost  the  same  moment  and  was  happy  that  the 
other  was  dead.  Their  oaths  were  fulfilled.  Thus 
passed  another  epic  or  drama  in  the  life  of  the  people 
of  southern  Illinois. 

Ora  Thomas  was  buried  with  much  pomp  by  his 
many  friends  and  great  was  the  ceremony  for  the 
fallen  deputy  sheriff  but  it  was  incomparable  to  that 
of  S.  Glenn  Young.  Thousands  of  people  from  miles 
away  came  for  one  glimpse  at  the  famous  raider  or 
for  a  peep  at  his  tomb  in  the  Herrin  cemetery.  Not 
until  the  end  of  the  world  will  the  scene  of  the  funeral 
of  S.  Glenn  Young  fade  from  history.  Neither  will  the 
deeds  of  this  man  be  forgotten.  Nor  will  the  war 
which  was  carried  on  by  this  man  be  forgotten. 

In  cities  many  miles  away  people  who  took  no 
side  in  the  affair  expressed  their  opinions  and  many 
believed  that  the  warfare  was  over.  Yet  it  grew  in 
proportion  and  the  name  of  Herrin  and  Williamson 
county  was  heard  in  foreign  countries. 

Charter  4  Dea]s  with  Sheriff  Galligan  and  Happenings 
in  Williamson  County. 

CHAPTER  4. 

February  8th  and  9th,  Friday  and  Saturday,  1924, 

8 


were  busy  days  for  officers  in  both  Herrin  and  Marion, 
Williamson  County,  Illinois. 

On  Friday  evening  at  6:30  o*clock  persons  living 
in  towns  around  Herrin  who  had  been  there  on  busi- 
ness reported  everything  quiet.  But  the  Herrin  of 
three  hours  later  was  a  city  of  lurking  death  and  mur- 
der. Crowds  stormed  down  through  the  business  dis- 
trict and  pistol  shots,  some  scattered  and  some  in  vol- 
ume were  heard  from  every  precinct. 

The  cold-blooded  shooting  of  Ceasar  Cagle,  a  con- 
stable and  justice  of  the  peace  of  Herrin,  was  the  be- 
ginning of  the  fracas  which  resulted  in  the  entire 
county  being  practically  under  military  restriction. 

Cagle  had  played  an  important  part  in  the  raids 
made  in  the  county  under  the  leadership  of  S.  Glenn 
Young,  had  incurred  the  enmity  of  a  number  of  men 
who  had  suffered  arrest  as  a  result  of  warrants  being 
served  out  of  Cagle's  office.  These  men,  it  seems 
planned  to  *'get"  Cagle  and  dispatched  the  dead  man's 
son  to  the  Masonic  Temple  at  Herrin  to  inform  his 
father  that  he  was  wanted  on  important  business  at 
the  Jefferson  Hotel. 

Cagle  started  down  the  street  and  had  proceeded 
as  far  as  a  corner  near  the  Jefferson  Hotel  when  he 
was  struck  down  by  a  man  who  had  been  hiding  in 
the  shadows.  Several  persons  said  they  saw  a  bunch 
of  men  fire  shots  into  Cagle's  body,  killing  him  in- 
stantly. Immediately  following  the  death  of  Cagle 
warrants  were  issued  for  George  Galligan,  sheriff, 
Ora  Thomas,  deputy  sheriff,  Hugh  Willis,  United 
Mine  Workers'  official,  John  Layman,  deputy  sheriff 
and  several  others. 

Chief  of  Police  John  Ford,  of  Herrin,  together 
with  several  other  officers  set  out  to  arrest  the  men 

9 


for  whom  the  warrants  were  issued.  It  was  reported 
at  the  time  that  the  men  had  taken  refuge  in  the  Her- 
rin  hospital.  A  Dr.  Black  was  said  to  have  taken  the 
men  in  and  when  officers  demanded  they  be  admitted 
a  fusillade  of  shots  greeted  them.  The  fire  was  return- 
ed by  the  officers  and  the  windows  were  shot  out  of 
the  hospital.  The  patients  were  said  to  have  suffered 
m.uch  from  the  smoke  and  excitement.  The  officers 
drew  away  from  the  hospital  without  making  any 
arrests. 

The  officers  then  went  to  a  club  hall  and  when 
they  were  refused  admittance  started  a  fight  and  John 
Layman,  deputy  sheriff,  was  shot.  The  Herrin  police 
officers  were  later  taken  to  a  Perry  county  jail  as  a 
result  of  the  shooting  at  the  club  house.  S.  Glenn 
Young  assumed  charge  of  police  activities  in  Herrin 
then  because  Chief  of  Police  John  Ford  was  one  of  the 
men  locked  in  the  Perry  county  jail. 

When  the  uniformed  soldiers  stepped  off  the  train 
in  Kerrin  citizens  breathed  a  sigh  of  relief  as  wild 
reports  about  the  Flaming  Circle,  Ku  Klux  Klan  and 
raids  on  homes  where  liquor  was  stored  were  con- 
current. 

S.  Glenn  Young  made  the  remark  at  that  time  that 
eye-witnesses  said  Ora  Thomas  and  John  Layman 
killed  Cagle. 

Sheriff  George  Galligan  w^as  arrested  the  next 
day  and  held  on  a  charge  of  being  an  accessory  to  the 
murder  of  Ceaser  Cagle.  He  was  lodged  in  jail  but 
was  soon  released. 

At  this  time  cities  in  Williamson  county  organized 
corps  of  men  armed  with  machine  guns  and  rifles  to 
help  preserve  order. 

At  this  time,  the  12th  of  February,  1924,  a  man 

10 


ch?a'ged  with  complicitj^  with  the  murder  of  Ceasar 
Cagle  was  reported  to  be  on  the  jury  at  the  coroner's 
inquest  into  Cagle's  death.  No  one  was  held  following 
the  inquest. 

Chapter  5  Deals  with  Peaceful  Herrin  and  the  Sheriff 

Who  Took  the  Place  of  Galligan. 

ALSO  LESTER  STRIP  MINE  MASSACRE. 

CHAPTER  5. 

In  December,  1925,  Herrin  stood  a  purged  cit}/. 
Evangelist  Howard  S.  Williams  had  just  finished  his 
campaign.  He  had  preached  of  brotherly  love.  Where 
men  had  used  pistols  before,  they  now  used  Bibles. 
Weapons  were  traded  for  working  tools  and  books 
such  as  h>Tnn  books  and  Bibles. 

There  were  two  outstanding  reasons  for  peace 
coming  to  Herrin.  One  was  the  death  of  S.  Glenn 
Young  and  the  other  the  religious  revival  held  in  June 
1925  by  Howard  S.  Williams.  Of  course,  the  death 
of  Ora  Thomas  aided  in  bringing  peace  but  not  as  that 
of  Young.  Young,  in  dying,  did  what  he  could  not  do 
when  he  was  living. 

After  the  death  of  Young  and  Thomas,  although  a 
nominal  truce  was  declared,  the  old  enmities  snarled  at 
each  other,  more  to  keep  up  appearances  than  because 
they  really  hated.  And  then  came  the  Williams  revival. 
For  six  weeks  he  thrust  the  picture  of  peace  and  har- 
mony before  his  hearers.  Men  and  women  of  all 
creeds  came  to  hear  him.  There  were  a  few  conver- 
sions and  then  the  idea  permeated  that  there  on  the 
mourner's  bench  was  the  place  to  lay  down  all  the 
bitterness   of  the   past.      Those    who   had   hated,   or 

11 


thought  they  had  hated,  sought  mutual  refuge  in  re- 
ligion. One  confessed  the  error  of  his  ways  and  others 
followed.  In  short,  the  revival  offered  the  solution  of 
the  whole  problem.  With  all  confessing  their  guilt 
there  could  be  no  loss  of  pride  to  anyone — and  so  in 
the  Williams  tabernacle  was  reared  again  the  substant- 
ial structure  of  good  citizenship  that  promises  to  re- 
main to  the  end  of  time. 

No  attempt  is  made  by  anyone  to  belittle  the  ef- 
forts of  the  evangelist.  He  was  the  medium  through 
v.'hich  too  much  good  was  accomplished  for  anyone  to 
say  that  it  was  not  his  powers  of  eloquence  but  the 
opportuneness  of  his  visit  that  led  to  such  far-reaching 
results.  He  will  always  be  kindly  remembered  in 
Herrin,  especially  that  dramatic  night  when  he  in- 
duced Sheriff  George  Galligan,  arch  enemy  of  the 
klansmen,  to  ride  boldly  into  Herrin  and  sit  on  the 
platform  surrounded  by  hundreds  of  men  who  had 
sworn  to  kill  him  on  sight.  Indeed  the  situation  was  a 
dramatic  one.  Hundreds  were  converted  that  memor- 
able night  and  thus  passed  the  Ku  Klux  Klan  warfare 
in  Herrin.  Southern  Illinois  again  came  to  light  in 
the  news  columns  when  Charlie  Birger's  gang  and  the 
Shelton  brothers  gang  became  enemies  after  being 
friends  and  fighting  side  by  side  in  the  Klan  war. 
They  were  enemies  of  the  Klan  together  and  gambled, 
raided  and  killed  for  a  living.  Bootlegging  was  their 
main  occupation  for  several  years  in  southern  Illinois. 
The  havoc  they  wrought  is  even  greater  than  the  Klan 
v.^ar  or  the  Lester  strip  mine  massacre  which  is  de- 
scribed in  the  following  paragraph. 

Over  a  score  of  men  were  killed  in  July  near  Her- 
rin at  the  Lester  strip  mine  in  the  year  of  1922.  When 
the  mine?  in  general  closed  as  a  result  of  a  strike 

12 


^^ 


||M)^IMC^*X^'«^l{<d>B4^^ 


■4 


!-«» 


ART  NEWMAN 


niiiiiiiiilt*   .^ 


union  miners  continued  to  work  on  condition  that  no 
coal  be  shipped  away  from  the  mine.  When  coal  wa^ 
shipped  from  the  mine  the  union  men  quit  and  '*scab" 
miners  were  brought  in  from  all  parts  of  the  country. 
They  were  men  who  roamed  about  looking  for  any- 
thing to  do  where  they  could  pick  up  money  in  an  easy 
way.    A  large  number  of  guards  were  placed  around 

the  mine  while  the  miners  worked,  and  for  a  time  al 
went  well. 

One  morning  some  union  miners  started  toward 
the  mine  and  the  superintendent  of  the  mine  is  said 
to  have  picked  up  a  rifle  and  killed  one  of  the  leading 
men.  The  union  miners  then  left.  Before  this  all 
kinds  of  trouble  had  been  stirred  up  and  many  out- 
rageous acts  had  been  committed  by  both  sides.  After 
the  killing  at  the  mine  a  crowd  of  men,  armed  to  the 
teeth,  set  out  to  the  mine,  ran  some  of  the  guards  away, 
killed  some  of  them,  and  caught  about  22  or  23  men. 
These  prisoners  they  took  away  and  slaughtered  as  if 
they  had  been  sheep.  Several  trials  were  held  follow- 
ing that  but  no  one  was  convicted  of  anything  as  every 
witness  swore  that  the  defendant  could  not  have  been 
near  the  mine  that  day  as  he  saw  him  some  where  else. 
The  officers  of  Williamson  county  were  then  elected 
upon  the  strength  of  their  promises  to  defend  the 
union  men.  Taking  advantage  of  promises  many  men 
started  bootlegging  and  running  road  houses  knowing 
they  would  not  be  harmed.  Then  came  the  Ku  Klux 
and  the  terrible  war  which  ended  with  the  death  of 
Young  and  Thomas  and  the  revival  of  Howard  S.  Wil- 
liams. All  was  then  quiet  in  southern  Illinois  until 
the  rival  gangs  of  Cahrlie  Birger  and  the  Shelton 
brothers  got  busy. 

13 


Chapter  6  Deals  with  the  Early  Life  of  Charlie  Blrger. 

His  First  Killing. 
CHAPTER  6. 

Charlie  Birger  was  born  in  Russia  in  1882,  and 
immigrated  with  his  family  when  but  a  child  to  Amer- 
ica where  the  Birger  family  settled  in  St.  Louis.  While 
Birger  was  still  a  small  boy,  the  family  moved  from  St. 
Louis  to  Harrisburg,  Illinois,  where  Birger  grew  up. 
At  one  time  during  his  youth  he  lived  in  Hell's  Half 
Acre,  New  York  City,  and  there  learned  the  life  of  the 
underworld.  He  also  spent  much  time  in  East  St. 
Louis,  Illinois,  when  a  boy,  it  is  said.  He  escaped  the 
bloodshed  of  red  Russia  which  was  unrivaled  for  its 
bloodshed  but  he  did  his  part  in  spreading  the  tinge  of 
red  over  southern  Illinois  and  personally  caused  the 
taking  of  many  lives  and  the  shedding  of  much  blood. 

Before  reaching  manhood,  young  Birger  manifest- 
ed, an  interest  in  adventure  and  enlisted  in  the  United 
States  Cavalry,  serving,  he  says,  during  the  Spanish- 
Am^erican  war,  and  for  several  years  afterwards. 

Coming  out  of  the  army,  Birger  returned  to  Har- 
risburg, and  took  up  farming,  and  judging  from  his 
own  assertions  he  became  quite  a  successful  farmer. 
At  one  time,  according  to  his  own  statement,  he  owned 
400  acres  of  land  and  a  home  in  Harrisburg,  although 
it  is  doubtful  if  all  these  properties  came  into  his 
possession  as  rewards  for  the  honest  tilling  of  the  soil. 

The  early  years  of  the  twentieth  century  found 
Birger  operating  a  small  coal  mine  between  Edgemont 
and  St.  Louis,  and  in  1912  he  lived  in  Christopher.  A 
year  later  he  was  back  at  Harrisburg. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  persons  who  have 

14 


known  Eirger  for  a  great  many  years  remember  him 
as  the  proprietor  of  a  restaurant  with  a  shady  reputa- 
tion at  Ledford,  near  Harrisburg. 

There  was  little  semblance  in  Birger  then  to  the 
gunman  and  gang-leader  that  he  later  became.  He 
operated  his  lunch  room,  ran  a  gambling  game  and 
sold  whiskey,  but  that  was  in  the  days  before  national 
or  even  state-wide  prohibition  and  there  were  many 
such  places.  Birger's  place  attracted  no  more  atten- 
tion than  simply  being  one  among  many  places  outside 
the  dry  areas  here  and  there  w^here  a  man  could  buy 
whiskey.  Biijger  himself  attracted  little  attention 
other  than  for  being  a  little  different  from  most 
proprietors  of  such  places  in  that  he  had  certain  at- 
tributes of  a  gentleman. 

He  was  kind-hearted  and  considerate  to  the  unfor- 
tunate and  the  idol  of  those  whom  he  employed.  One 
Harrisburg  girl  who  was  employed  in  the  Birger  Res- 
taurant, w^ho  had  since  married  and  moved  away  from 
southern  Illinois  would  not  believe  that  the  Charlie 
Eirger  whom  she  w^orked  for  at  Ledford  w^as  the  same 
Charlie  Birger  of  Gangland  fame  when  she  returned  to 
southern  Illinois  on  a  visit. 

During  the  years  from  1913  to  1923  Birger  oper- 
ated various  places  in  Saline  county  and  just  across 
the  county  line  in  Williamson  county.  He  did  not  give 
the  law  enforcement  authorities  much  trouble,  nor 
was  he  troubled  by  them  to  any  extent  until  after  the 
eighteenth  amendment  was  passed.  It  was  during  the 
prevalence  of  local  option  as  to  the  liquor  traffic  when 
Eirger  was  in  his  heydey.  In  both  Saline  and  William- 
son counties,  Birger  coud  usually  be  found  as  the  cen- 
ter of  an  oasis  just  on  the  outer  edge  of  some  area 
w^hich  had  gone  dry  by  the  voters'  choice.    Such  was 

15 


Ledfcrd,  and  such  was  Halfway  in  Williamson  county 
to  which  Eirger  was  attracted  because  of  the  apparent 
permanency  of  the  dry  rule  in  Marion. 

It  was  at  Halfway  on  November  15,  1923  that  Birger 
killed  his  first  man  in  Williamson  county,  although  it 
was  said  at  that  time  that  Cecil  Knighton  whom  he 
killed  at  Halfway  on  that  date  was  his  fifth  victim. 

Knighton  was  a  boy  about  24  years  old  and  an 
employe  of  Birger,  having  come  to  Saline  county  to 
Birger's  employ  from  Alabama.  At  that  time  Birger's 
place  which  was  the  building  that  formerly  stood  on 
the  west  side  of  the  road  at  Halfway  was  not  operating 
and  Eirger  was  associated  with  Charles,  alias  Chink 
Schafer,  Nathan  Riddle  and  Ralph  Hill  in  the  opera- 
tion of  a  place  across  the  road  on  the  east.  Knighton 
was  employed  there  as  a  bartender.  Birger  and  Knight- 
on slept  in  Birger's  building  across  the  road. 

On  the  night  of  the  killing,  witnesses  testified  at 
the  inquest,  Birger  and  Knighton  were  in  a  bad  humor. 
They  had  been  having  trouble  for  three  or  four  days. 
Their  associates  professed  not  to  know  what  the  trouble 
was  about.  -It  was  said,  however,  that  as  Birger  left 
the  place  that  was  open  to  cross  the  road  to  where  he 
had  teen  sleeping,  Knighton  followed  him  with  a  gun. 
Inmates  of  the  former  place  soon  afterwards  heard 
three  shots.  The  first  ,a  revolver  shot,  was  said  to 
have  been  fired  by  Knighton,  and  the  next  two  in. 
rapid  succession  came  from  a  shotgun  in  the  hands  of 
Charlie  Birger.  Knighton  was  dead,  lying  face  down 
in  the  road,  when  the  men  rushed  out  of  the  road 
house.  Birger  surrendered  and  spent  the  rest  of  the 
night  in  the  Williamson  county  jail.  He  was  exoner- 
ated by  a  coroner's  jury  the  next  day. 

Three  nights  later,  Birger,  himself,  was  shot  and 

16 


seriously  wounded  in  a  shooting  fray  at  Halfway  in 
which  W.  G.  (Whitey)  Doering,  Eagen  gangster,  was 
killed.  At  the  time  it  was  generally  believed  Birger 
killed  Doering  although  no  testimony  before  the  cor- 
oner's jury  indicated  such  to  be  true.  No  eye  witnesses 
of  the  shooting  testified.  The  two  men  were  outside  of 
the  Halfway  road  house  alone  at  the  time  of  the  shoot- 
ing, according  to  Birger. 

Birger  was  in  the  Herrin  hospital  at  the  time  the 
coroner's  jury  convened  at  Herrin  and  although  the 
jury  did  not  interrogate  him,  he  submitted  a  written 
statement  to  the  jury.  In  the  statement  Birger  said 
that  Doering  came  to  the  place  and  called  him  outside 
saying  that  he  wanted  to  talk  to  him.  He  said  that 
shortly  after  they  got  out  on  the  porch,  Doering  drew 
a  gun  and  shot  him,  and  that  immediately  afterwards 
a  fusilade  of  twenty  or  twenty-five  shots  were  fired. 
Birger  said  that  he  fell  to  the  ground  when  Doering 
shot  him,  and  that  fact  saved  him  from  being  caught 
in  the  volley  that  followed,  but  Doering  who  was  stand- 
ing erect  was  caught  in  the  fire  and  mortally  wounded. 
He  died  shortly  afterward  on  the  operating  table  in 
the  Herrin  hospital. 

Three  years  after  the  shooting,  Birger  told  a  news- 
paper man  additional  details  of  the  Doering  killing. 
He  said  that  after  Doering  had  called  him  out,  the 
St.  Louis  gangster  suggested  that  Birger  assist  him  in 
robbing  the  payroll  of  a  Harrisburg  mine.  Birger  told 
the  newspaper  man  that  he  became  indignant  at  Doer- 
ing's  suggestion  and  told  him  that  he  would  not  take 
part  in  any  such  robbery,  nor  would  he  permit  any  one 
else  to  prey  upon  the  Saline  county  mines. 

Birger  said  that  while  he  was  denouncing  Doer- 
ing for  suggesting  the  robbery,  Doering  shot  him,  and 

17 


almost  immediately  through  a  window  in  the  road 
house  behind  him,  one  of  Birger's  followers  shot 
Doering  down.  Birger  never  disclosed  the  name  of 
his  man  who  killed  Doering. 

Birger  and  Doering  had  known  each  other  for  a 
great  many  years,  and  just  what  connection  there  was 
between  the  leader  of  the  St.  Louis  Egan's  gangster 
and  the  man  who  later  became  leader  of  even  a  more 
famous  gang  was  not  revealed  at  that  time.  Doering 
died  without  revealing  any  of  the  many  gangland  sec- 
rets which  he  harbored.  Birger  recovered  from  his 
wounds,  however,  and  throughout  the  remainder  of 
his  career  runs  the  adage  proven  so  conclusively  in  the 
death  of  Doering,  ''Dead  men  tell  no  tales." 

CHAPTER  7. 

Chapter  7  Deals  with  Birger  as  Owner  of  Shady  Rest 

Before  the  Opening  of  the  War  with  the 

Shelton  Brothers  Gang, 

The  notoriety  attracted  to  Birger  as  a  result  of 
the  shooting  fray  at  Halfway  in  which  Whitey  Doering 
lost  his  life  and  in  which  Birger  was  wounded,  result- 
ed in  suspicion  being  cast  upon  Birger  as  a  possible 
member  of  the  Egan  gang  which  two  years  before  had 
staged  a  $2,000,000  mail  robbery  at  St.  Louis.  Doer- 
ing at  the  time  of  his  death  was  under  conviction  for 
the  robbery  but  was  free  on  an  appeal  bond.  At  the 
time  Doering  was  killed,  there  was  considerable  rumor 
that  a  quarrel  had  ensued  between  the  two  over  the 
division  of  the  mail  robbery  loot.  As  a  result  two  days 
after  the  killing.  Inspector  Keefe  of  the  postal  depart- 
ment headed  a  search  of  the  Halfway  road  houses  in 

18 


the  hopes  of  finding  part  of  the  loot,  but  the  search 
was  unsuccessful. 

According  to  Birger  he  had  known  Doering  22 
years  before  at  the  time  Birger  operated  a  coal  mine 
between  Edgemont  and  East  St.  Louis. 

Whatever  were  the  circumstances  which  led  up  to 
the  death  of  Doering,  the  shooting  affray  ending  in 
his  death,  at  least,  according  to  Birger,  brought  about 
Birger's  meeting  with  Carl  Shelton.  Shelton  was  first 
to  become  an  ally  and  then  an  arch  enemy  of  Birger. 
The  two  met  in  the  Herrin  hospital  while  Birger  was 
recovering  from  his  wounds. 

Later,  as  Birger  put  it,  the  two  joined  in  the 
"slot  machine  racket"  in  Williamson  county,  owning 
jointly  the  machines  which  were  operated  in  many  of 
the  bootlegging  joints  of  the  county.  The  two  of  them 
reaped  considerable  profits  for  a  year  or  so,  until  ac- 
tivities of  S.  Glenn  Young  and  the  Ku  Klux  Klan  be- 
gan to  interfere.  Speaking  of  his  connection  with  the 
anti-Klan  faction,  Birger  at  one  time  said,  'The  Ku 
Klux  Klan  began  to  stir  things  up  in  Herrin  and  Shel- 
ton and  I  began  to  tone  down  some  of  the  Klansmen, 
although  they  got  a  bunch  of  our  men,  too." 

Throughout  the  war  with  the  Klan,  Birger  and 
the  Sheltons  remained  henchmen  up  to  and  including 
the  last  fight  on  the  occasion  of  an  election  at  Herrin 
on  April  13,  1926.  Birger  denies  that  he  participated 
in  that  fight  which  resulted  in  six  fatalities,  but  he 
admits  that  some  of  his  men  took  part  in  it. 

A  few  weeks  afterward  came  the  break  between 
Birger  and  the  Shelton  brothers,  Carl,  Earl  and  Ber- 
nie.  Birger's  version  of  the  break  was  that  difficul- 
ties arose  when  the  Sheltons  held  up  a  Harrisbur^ 
business  man  and  took  several  thousand  dollars  worth 

19 


of  jewelry  and  money  from  him.  The  business  man 
was  a  friend  to  Birger,  and  Birger  said  he  forced  the 
Sheltons  to  return  the  money.  After  the  money  was 
returned,  Birger  says,  the  Sheltons  planned  to  kidnap 
the  business  man  and  hold  him  for  $1,000  ransom. 
Art  Newman  learned  of  the  plot,  according  to  Birger, 
and  it  was  then  that  Newman  allied  himself  with  Bir- 
ger by  informing  him  of  the  plot  which  was  blocked 
by  Birger. 

The  Sheltons,  however,  have  a  different  version 
of  the  break  between  them  and  Birger.  Trouble  be- 
tween the  two  factions  began,  according  to  Carl  Shel- 
ton,  leader  of  the  Shelton  gang,  when  the  latter  refused 
to  assist  in  smuggling  some  of  Birger 's  relatives  into 
the  United  States.  Shelton  said  that  early  difficulties 
between  he  and  Birger  were  climaxed  by  a  disagree- 
ment over  the  division  of  the  profits  in  the  slot  mach- 
ine business.  Shelton  said  that  Birger  had  collected 
about  $3,000  from  the  slot  machines,  and  when  Shel- 
ton asked  Birger  for  his  share  of  the  profits,  Birger 
declared  there  were  no  profits  to  be  divided,  claiming 
that  he  had  expended  all  the  receipts  for  official  pro- 
tection. Shelton  then  severed  business  as  well  as 
friendly  relations  with  Birger.  When  learning  of 
Birger*s  version  of  the  break  between  them,  Shelton 
declared  that  Birger  had  framed  the  robbery  on  the 
Harrisburg  business  man  in  order  to  make  a  grand- 
stand play  as  the  protector  of  Harrisbiirg  citizens. 

The  beginning  of  the  gang  war  found  Birger  as 
the  wealthy  owner  of  Shady  Rest,  a  resort  notorious 
far  and  wide.  The  resort  was  located  in  Williamson 
county  just  about  two  miles  west  of  the  Saline  county 
line.  It  was  located  on  a  60-acre  tract  of  land  which 
was  mostly  covered  with  timber.    Near  the  state  hard 

20 


r<,.. 


>«oaV- 


1-X^i 


RAY      \TL\''   HYLAND 


road  in  a  clearing^  Birger  had  erected  a  log  cabin  and 
installed  in  it  practically  every  convenience  of  the 
modern  home.  In  front  of  the  cabin  on  the  state  road 
stood  a  lunch  stand  which  served  the  two-fold  purpose 
of  a  convenience  to  travelers  and  of  an  outpost  to 
protect  the  cabin  against  surprise  from  the  authori- 
ties. Built  in  1924,  Shady  Rest  however,  was  not 
troubled  much  with  official  interference  during  the 
rest  of  that  year  and  the  next,  during  which  it  ran 
full  blast.  On  summer  afternoons  scores  of  automo- 
biles could  be  seen  parked  at  Shady  Rest  while  their 
owners  were  at  the  cabin.  It  was  the  most  notorious 
resort  in  the  southern  part  of  the  state,  and  attracted 
gamblers  and  others  from  far  and  near.  There  was 
an  arena  for  cock  fighting,  while  blooded  bull  dogs, 
eagles  and  monkeys  occupied  various  large  cages  about 
the  place. 

Aside  from  being  a  popular  place  where  whiskey, 
good  and  bad,  could  be  bought,  Shady  Rest  was  also 
a  station  of  a  great  booze  transportation  system  that 
ran  from  the  coast  of  Florida  to  St.  Louis.  Whiskey 
caravans  with  smuggled  liquor  from  Florida  frequent- 
ly stopped  at  Shady  Rest,  according  to  Birger's  own 
story,  to  wait  during  the  day  time  to  complete  the  trip 
to  St.  Louis  at  night. 

Birger  admitted  that  he  was  a  bootlegger,  but  he 
declared  that  the  Sheltons  had  him  beaten  by  far  in 
their  organization,  which  he  said  transported  the 
smuggled  liquor.  Birger  declared  that  the  Sheltons 
even  used  stolen  cars  in  their  liquor  transportation, 
and  got  by  with  it. 

The  gang  war  put  an  end  to  profits  in  the  whis- 
key business  for  both  Birger  and  the  Sheltons.  Al- 
though the  "battle  to  death"  never  took  place,  attacks 

21 


and  threat  of  attacks  upon  Shady  Rest  as  well  as  the 
armed  crew  of  some  score  men  which  Birger  kept  there 
scared  his  trade  away.  Patrons  became  afraid  to  stop 
there.  Virtually  the  same  thing  was  true  of  the  Shel- 
ton  joints  near  Herrin.  In  the  attacks  upon  Shad|| 
Rest,  dynamite  bombs  thrown  from  automobiles  and 
an  airplane  were  used  as  well  as  machine  guns  and 
rifles.  Armored  cars  were  called  in  to  use  by  both 
factions. 

CHAPTER  8. 

Chapter  8  Deals  with  the  Murders  of  Ward  "Casey'' 
Jones,  Mayor  Joe  Adams  of  West  City  and  Mr. 

and  Mrs.  Lory  Price  of  Marion,  111. 

ALSO  THE  CONFESSION  OF  ART  NEWMAN, 

BIRGERITE. 

The  body  of  Ward  "Casey"  Jones,  Birger  gangster 
was  found  in  a  creek  on  October  28,  1926  near  Equal- 
ity, Gallatin  County,  Illinois.  Charley  Birger  identi- 
fied the  body  which  was  riddled  with  shot  and  had 
Jones  buried,  paying  the  bill. 

Charged  with  this  murder  in  a  trial  held  in  Wil- 
liamson county  late  in  June  and  early  in  July  in  1927 
were  Rado  Millich  and  Eural  Gowan.  A  man  by  the 
name  of  Rone  turned  state's  evidence  and  was  not 
charged  with  the  murder.  The  result  of  the  trial  is 
told  later  in  this  book. 

Millich  was  a  Montenegrin  and  had  a  bullet-shap- 
ed head.  Gowan  was  a  snappy  looking  boy  of  19  and 
presented  quite  a  contrast  in  court  compared  with  the 
dark,  ill-looking  Millich.    Rone  was  used  as  a  witness 

22 


of  the  state  in  the  case.  He  claimed  Millich  and  Gowan 
used  several  means  of  torture  on  Jones  and  then  mur- 
dered him  in  Shady  Rest  and  then  placed  the  body 
in  a  car  in  which  it  was  hauled  to  the  creek  near  Equal- 
ity and  thro\\Ti  overboard.  State's  Attorney  Arlie  0. 
Boswell,  a  very  young  man,  conducted  the  prosecution 
in  this  trial. 

Gowan  swore  that  he  was  not  a  gunman  but  only 
a  flunky  and  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  killing.  At- 
torneys for  Millich  said  that  Millich  shot  and  killed 
Jones  in  front  of  the  barbecue  stand  of  Birger*s  but 
that  it  was  in  self  defense.  Arlie  Boswell  said  Jones 
was  tortured  two  days  before  he  was  put  to  death.  At 
this  time  Charlie  Birger  was  in  jail  for  the  murder  of 
]Mayor  Joe  Adams,  charged  with  complicity.  While 
the  Jones  trial  was  going  on  and  Birger  was  awaiting 
his  trial,  T.  A.  King,  the  builder  of  the  armored  car  of 
Birger's,  filed  suit  for  $175  which  he  declared  was  due 
him,  and  got  judgment  for  that  amount. 
The  Murder  of  Mayor  Joe  Adams  of  West  City,  111. 
It  was  the  armored  car  of  the  Sheltons  that  result- 
ed in  Birger's  intense  hatred  for  300-pound  Mayor  Joe 
Adams  of  West  City.  Birger  went  to  Adams'  home 
at  West  City  and  told  him  he  wanted  the  Sheltons' 
armored  truck,  which  he  accused  Adams  of  harboring. 
Adams  refused  to  turn  it  over  to  him  and  Birger  de- 
clared he  had  better  deliver  the  armored  truck  to  him 
the  following  morning  in  order  to  save  trouble.  Adams 
did  not  deliver  the  truck,  and  a  few  days  later  two 
motor  cars  speeding  through  West  City  riddled  with 
machine  gun  bullets  two  houses  adjacent  to  the  Adams 
home,  which  were  evidently  mistaken  by  the  various 
members  of  the  attacking  party  as  the  residence  of 
the  West  City  Mayor. 

23 


A  week  later  a  dynamite  bomb  hurled  from  a  pass- 
ing automobile  landed  in  Adams'  front  yard,  tearing 
away  part  of  the  home.  On  one  occasion  Birger  called 
the  wife  of  the  West  City  Mayor  on  the  telephone,  and 
told  her  to  take  out  plenty  of  life  insurance  on  her 
husband. 

It  was  only  a  few  days  after  that,  December  26, 
1926,  that  the  West  City  Mayor  was  called  to  the  front 
door  of  his  home  and  shot  down  by  the  Thomassoii 
brothers,  Elmo  and  Harry,  employed,  according  to  the 
latter,  by  Charley  Birger,  to  do  the  deed.  Elmo  Thom- 
asson  burned  to  death  in  Shady  Rest  when  it  went  up 
in  flames. 

The  Thomassons  were  but  two  of  the  youths  at- 
tracted to  Charley  Birger.  There  Were  many  others, 
among  them  being  Eural  Gowan  and  Clarence  Rone, 
defendants  in  the  trial  slated  to  open  in  June  for  the 
murder  of  Ward  Jones  at  Birger's  cabin.  These  boys 
were  loyal  to  Birger,  and  Birger  himself  relates  the 
story  of  Rone's  loyalty  to  him  when  Rone  would  have 
been  rewarded  for  betraying  his  chief  tan. 

Birger  said  that  the  Shelton  boys  captured  Rone 
in  Marion  one  night,  and  knowing  his  affiliation  with 
their  enemy,  debated  as  to  his  fate.  Finally  they  de- 
cided to  free  Rone  and  to  pay  him  to  return  to  the 
cabin  and  signal  them  when  Birger  was  there.  Rone, 
according  to  the  story,  was  to  display  a  white  handker- 
chief in  one  of  the  windows  of  the  cabin  when  Birger 
arrived.  Instead,  he  warned  Birger  of  the  plot,  and 
the  gang  leader  Was  prepared  to  withstand  any  sur- 
prise attack. 

During  the  g^ng  war  Bii*ger  lived  with  his  wife 
and  children  in  Harrisbiirg,  seldom  staying  at  the 
cabin  at  Shady  Rest.    At  his  home  a  guard  was  main- 

24 


tained  about  the  block  in  which  he  lived  to  prevent 
surprise  by  his  enemies.  Birger's  wife,  Mrs.  Bernice 
Birger,  who  is  pretty  and  but  19  years  of  age,  is  his 
second  wife.  His  first  wife  and  the  mother  of  his  two 
small  daughters,  and  Birger  are  divorced. 

The  separation  of  Birger  and  his  first  wife  came 
in  1925.  Late  in  1924  Birger  was  one  of  the  bootleg- 
gers raided  by  S.  Glenn  Young,  and  he  was  prosecuted 
in  Federal  Court  at  Danville  by  the  late  Judge  W.  C. 
Potter  of  Marion  on  Youngs  evidence.  Birger  stood 
trial  and  was  convicted.  Judge  Lindley  fined  Birger 
§500  for  possession  of  liquor,  $1000  for  selling  liquor, 
§1000  for  maintaining  a  common  nuisance,  and  sen- 
tenced him  to  serve  one  year  in  the  Vermillion  County 
Jail.  Just  before  the  Christmas  holidays  of  that  year 
Birger  petitioned  Judge  Lindley  for  a  short  parole  to 
spend  the  holidays  with  his  wife,  Mrs.  Bee  Birger,  and 
their  two  children.  Before  the  judge  had  acted  on  the 
petition,  however,  Birger's  wife  wrote  to  Judge  Lind- 
ley not  to  let  Birger  out,  saying  that  he  had  threatened 
to  kill  her.  The  parole  was  denied,  and  when  Birger 
was  finally  released  from  jail  he  and  his  wife  lived 
apart.  In  February,  1926,  he  married  his  present  wife 
w^ho  cares  for  his  two  daughters,  Minnie,  age  9,  and 
Charline,  age  5.  Birger's  first  wife  is  also  said  to  be 
remarried. 

Throughout  Birger's  career  two  characteristics 
stand  out,  his  facilities  for  providing  alibis  to  cover 
his  crimes,  and  his  work  as  a  benefactor  of  the  unfor- 
tunate. It  is  this  latter  characteristic  of  his  that 
earned  for  him  the  nickname  of  ''Robin  Hood." 

Through  his  charitable  actions,  Birger  won  the 
esteem  of  many  of  the  better  citizens  of  Harrisburg. 
He  was  known  to  have  contributed  frequently  to  the 

25 


support  of  widows  and  orphans.  On  at  least  one  occas- 
ion during  the  winter,  Birger  made  a  survey  of  Har- 
risburg  to  determine  the  number  of  widows  in  need  of 
coal,  and  he  saw  that  they  were  supplied  with  fuel. 
On  other  occasions  he  bought  food  for  the  unfortun- 
ates. 

Birger  and  his  men  visited  a  place  in  Herrin  one 
night  where  some  armed  bandits  were  said  to  have 
been  barricaded.  They  went  with  the  intention,  they 
said,  of  taking  the  armed  men  and  turning  them  over 
to  the  law.  But  when  they  arrived  at  the  home  and 
entered  they  found  only  an  elderly  woman  there  by 
the  bedside  of  her  sick  daughter.  The  couple  were 
destitute.  Birger  took  money  from  his  pocket  and 
gave  it  to  them.  Acts  of  this  kind  were  not  forgotten 
and  the  recipients  always  stood  up  for  him  afterwards. 
Birger  then  went  from  the  home  to  the  Elks  Club  and 
called  Joe  Crizzell,  custodian,  out  in  the  lobby.  "I  just 
went  out  to  a  house  in  your  town,"  he  told  Grizzell, 
''intending  to  shake  it  down,  but  all  I  found  there  was 
an  old  woman  and  her  sick  daughter  on  starvation.  I 
gave  them  some  money,  but  they've  got  to  be  cared  for 
and  have  some  food." 

When  the  gangster  had  gone,  Mr.  Grizzell,  carry- 
ing out  the  charitable  program  of  his  order,  investi- 
gated Birger's  story  and  found  it  true  as  he  had  re- 
lated it. 

Birger's  work  as  a  benevolent  benefactor  and  as  a 
gunman  and  gangster  went  hand  in  hand,  as  the  for- 
mer made  alibis  easy  for  the  latter.  The  fact  that  he 
could  readily  furnish  alibis  and  divert  suspicion  was 
responsible  to  a  great  extent  for  the  long  delays  about 
his  apprehension.  At  the  time  of  the  slaying  of  Mayor 
Joe  Adams  of  West  City,  Birger  was  in  Marion  and 

26 


talked  to  State's  Attorney  Arlie  0.  Boswell.  He  exhi- 
bited himself  about  public  places  in  Marion  at  the  very 
time  Elmo  and  Harry  Thomasson,  according  to  the  lat- 
ter's  story,  were  firing  the  shots  for  which  Thomasson 
said  they  were  paid  $50  each  for  ending  the  life  of 
Adams.  Harry  was  sentenced  to  life  imprisonment 
for  the  act. 

When  Lory  price  and  wife  disappeared  from  their 
home  in  Marion  all  the  circumstances  indicated  that 
the  Sheltons  were  the  abductors.  Everything  was  in 
Birger's  favor.  Price  was  reputed  to  be  Birger's 
friend.  He  was  thought  to  have  a  quarrel  with  Carl 
Shelton  just  a  few  days  before  he  was  taken  out  of  his 
home  and  killed.  Previous  to  the  Price  abduction,  the 
Sheltons  were  generally  regarded  as  the  attackers  of 
Birger's  Shady  Rest  when  four  of  Birger's  followers 
died  in  the  cabin. 

And  not  until  the  lips  of  gangland  were  opened 
and  associates  of  the  gangster  persuaded  to  talk  did 
the  authorities  actually  have  evidence  that  Birger 
kidnapped  the  Prices  and  that  he  had  previously  burn- 
ed his  own  cabin  and  killed  his  own  followers.  These 
crimes  are  alleged  to  have  been  committed  by  Birger. 
all  because  the  victims  "knew  too  much." 

Birger  also  was  the  '*cover  up  man'*  in  the  slay- 
ing of  Ward  Jones.  When  Jones'  body  was  found  in 
Gallatin  county  Birger  identified  the  body,  gave  an 
Equality  undertaker  instructions  to  arrange  a  funeral 
with  ''plenty  of  flowers"  and  send  the  bill  to  Birger. 
In  the  meantime,  Birger  swore  vengeance  on  the  Shel- 
tons and  allegedly  set  about  seeking  to  punish  them  as 
the  slayers  of  Jones. 

W^ith  Birger  brought  to  bay  the  one  question  at 
the  time  of  his  trial  was,  if  convicted  of  any  of  the 

27 


crimes  with  which  he  was  charged,  would  he  ever 
speak  to  clear  up  the  countless  other  gangland  myster- 
ies of  which  he  doubtless  knows  much. 

The  Confession  of  Art  Newman,  Birgerite. 

Following  is  a  part  of  the  confession  of  Art  New- 
man, one  time  a  great  friend  of  Birger,  as  given  to  a 
St.  Louis  Post-Dispatch  reporter:  About  3  p.  m.,  on 
January  17,  Charley  Birger  got  me  to  his  home  in  Har- 
risburg.  There  were  present,  beside  myself  and  Bir- 
ger, Connie  Ritter,  Ernest  Balleau,  Leslie  Simpson, 
Riley  Simmons,  Frank  Schrorer,  Freddie  Wooten  and 
Birger's  wife. 

Birger  asked  me  if  I  would  go  with  him  to  see 
Lory  Price,  remarking  "he  has  been  talking  too  damn 
much  to  Sheriff  Coleman  about  us  and  I  am  going  to 
put  a  stop  to  that  talk/* 

We  then  drove  to  Marion  in  two  automobiles,  my 
Chrysler  coach  and  Connie  Ritter's  Buick  sedan.  We 
drove  around  Marion  and  the  hard  road  in  that  vicini- 
ty for  about  two  hours  but  failed  to  see  Price  and  re- 
turned to  Harrisburg  about  6  p.  m.,  for  supper.  We 
started  out  again  for  Price  about  9  p.  m.,  and  drove  to 
his  home.  Observing  that  some  one  else  was  there 
we  drove  around  for  a  while  and  returned  later  to 
find  Price  gone.  We  then  drove  to  a  barbecue  stand 
just  north  of  Marion  where  we  remained  until  11:30 
p.  m.  At  this  barbecue  stand  we  saw  a  pet  monkey 
we  used  to  own  at  the  Birger  cabin.  They  told  us  at 
the  barbecue  stand  that  Price  brought  the  monkey 
there  about  11  o*clock  on  the  night  the  cabin  was  dy- 
namited. 

Upon  reaching  Price's  home,  we  got  out  and 
walked  to  the  porch.    Birger  called  Price  out  and  told 

28 


Letter  Lured  Adams  to  Death 


CclJ/  Al/i    "2^'-' — ^  5-^ 


/^2>lA^ 


^o-e  - 


,     /  "^  ^C^/ 


(O        0 


^ 


..m' 


Above  IS  the  letter'  which  Harry  Thomasson  and  his 
brother  Elmo  presented  to  Jlayor  Adams  at  his  home  ii 
West  City  and  then  shot  him  down  in  the  door  of  his  hom^ 


him  that  he  wanted  to  talk  to  him  and  asked  him  to 
get  down  and  get  in  my  car.  Birger  took  Price's  pistol 
from  him  and  laid  it  on  the  porch  and  Price  said,  *'are 
you  going  to  hurt  me,  Charlie?"  Birger  answered, 
**no,  I  just  want  to  talk  to  j^ou." 

Price  and  Birger  got  in  the  back  seat  of  my  car 
and  Freddie  Wooten  in  the  front  seat  with  me.  The 
door  was  open.  Birger  started  to  say  something  and 
Price  said  to  me:  **Art  drive  down  the  road  a  little 
way.  Let's  not  talk  here."  But  as  I  started  the  engine 
Birger  called  to  Ritter  and  the  others  standing  out- 
side, ''take  that  woman  out  and  do  away  with  her." 

Wooten  then  closed  the  door  and  we  started  to 
move.  Price  said,  with  alarm,  to  Birger:  "Charlie, 
please  don't  hurt  Ethel."  Birger  answered:  *'0h, 
never  mind,"  and  told  me  to  go  ahead  and  drive  around 
Saline  county.  I  drove  around  Saline  county  about 
an  hour,  during  which  time  Birger  cursed  Price  in  the 
foulest  language  and  accused  Price  of  having  sought 
to  prevent  Harry  Thomasson  from  talking  about  the 
Joe  Adams  murder  in  the  Marion  jail.  He  also  accus- 
ed Price  of  telling  Sheriff  Coleman  about  the  gang 
activities.  Price  denied  all  these  things  repeatedly, 
trying  to  show  Birger  that  he  never  had  sought  to 
hurt  him.  Birger  then  began  accusing  Price  of  know- 
ing who  dynamited  the  cabin.  Price  denied  this  and 
with  good  reason,  for  we  knew  who  dynamited  the 
cabin.    It  was  three  of  Birger's  own  men. 

Birger  ordered  me  to  drive  to  his  home  in  Harris- 
burg.  When  we  got  there  he  got  out  and  went  inside. 
He  came  out  in  a  minute  and  said : 

"Schrorer  is  still  in  there  with  that  dope  head, 
Crews.  I  told  him  when  we  left  to  take  Crews  out 
and  kill  him  because  I  did  not  want  Crews  to  see  us 

29 


leave."  Birger  then  got  in  the  car  and  ordered  me  to 
drive  to  Rosiclare  to  the  Spar  mine.  I  drove  down 
there  and  upon  reaching  there  Birger  got  out,  machine 
gun  in  hand  and  said:  'Trice  I  have  a  damned  good 
notion  to  take  you  out  and  kill  you  and  throw  you  in 
the  pit." 

Wooten  induced  Birger  to  get  back  in  the  car, 
telling  Birger  that  Price  was  right  and  was  telling  the 
truth.  Birger  got  back  in  the  car  and  told  me  to  drive 
back  to  Harrisburg,  where  he  told  me  to  drive  to  the 

ruins  of  the  cabin.    "I  want  to  show  this the 

ruins  he  has  caused." 

On  the  way  to  the  barbecue  stand  where  the  cabin 
used  to  be  Birger  got  kind  of  confidential  with  Price 
and  eased  up  to  him  saying:  "Price  I  want  you  to 
say  that  the  Shelton  brothers  blew  up  my  cabin  and 
killed  those  people  because  I  want  the  post  office  in- 
spector to  think  that  the  Shelton  brothers  were  trying 
to  get  you  and  me,  to  prevent  us  appearing  against 
the  Sheltons  at  the  mail  robbery  trial  at  Quincy.  If 
you  tell  this  it  will  make  things  look  blacker  for  the 
Sheltons  at  Quincy." 

Price  declared  that  he  did  not  know  who  blew  up 
the  cabin  and  Birger  cursed  him.  By  the  time  we 
reached  the  barbecue  stand  it  was  raining  hard.  Bir- 
ger ordered  us  to  get  out.  As  Birger  was  getting  out 
Price  leaned  over  to  me  and  said:  **Art  can  you  help 
me  now?" 

Before  I  could  reply  Birger,  machine  gun  in  hand 
said  threateningly:  "I  would  like  to  see  some  one 
help  you  now,"  and  then  took  Price  by  the  arm  and  took 
him  in  the  barbecue  stand  cursing  him  and  shot  him 
three  times  in  the  breast.  Price  pitched  forward  on 
his  face.    At  that  moment  the  other  car  drove  up  and 

30 


I  said :  "My  God,  you  have  killed  that  man  and  look 
where  you  have  put  us.  I  thought  you  only  wanted  to 
talk  to  him." 

Wooten  said :  *'If  I  had  an  idea  you  were  going  to 
do  this  dirty  work  I  would  not  have  come  out  here." 
Then  the  others  got  out  of  the  car  outside  and  Wooten 
said :  ''Now  here  is  that  other  car  with  that  woman, 
what  are  we  going  to  do  now?" 

Ritter  and  the  others  then  came  in  the  stand  and 
said  not  to  w^orry  about  the  woman,  that  they  had 
killed  her.    I  said:    "Where  did  you  put  her?" 

Ritter  said,  "down  in  an  old  mine  shaft  near  the 
Herrin  road  about  75  feet.  We  threw  her  in  and  heard 
her  hit  the  water.  Then  we  spent  two  hours  filling  it 
up  with  corrugated  iron,  stone,  timber  and  rubbage. 
We  filled  it  up." 

Birger  said:  "All  right.  I  know  an  old  mine 
near  DuQuoin.    I  will  put  him  there." 

They  then  put  Price  in  my  car  over  my  protest, 
wrapped  in  a  piece  of  canvas.  Birger  got  in  the  car 
and  ordered  me  to  drive.  He  sat  on  Price's  body, 
machine  gun  on  his  lap.  We  drove  for  a  while  around 
Carbondale  and  just  on  the  other  side  Birger  ordered 
me  to  stop  and  he  got  out  and  vomited.  He  said:  "I 
can  kill  a  man,  but  I  can't  sit  on  him.  I  don't  know 
what  the  hell  is  the  matter  with  me,  it's  not  my  nerve, 
but  when  I  kill  a  man  it  always  makes  me  sick  after- 
wards.   It  must  be  my  stomach." 

He  then  ordered  Ritter  to  get  in  my  car  and  we 
drove  on  about  5  miles.  I  thought  Price  was  dead, 
but  he  said,  "0  Connie,  you  will  live  to  regret  this.  I 
am  an  inocent  man."  Ritter  poked  him  with  a  mach- 
ine gun,  cursed  him  and  ordered  me  to  stop.  He  got 
out  and  called  back  to  Birger,  "I  have  had  enough." 

31 


Then  Simpson  was  put  in  the  car  and  we  rode  a  little 
while  and  he  could  not  stand  it  under  the  heavy  breath- 
ing of  Price,  so  he  got  out.  Birger  then  ordered  Woot- 
en  in  the  car,  but  he  didn't  sit  on  Price's  body  like  the 
others,  but  he  turned  down  the  front  seat  and  sat  on 
it.  We  then  drove  to  a  mine  near  DuQuoin.  Birger 
got  out  but  came  running  back  and  said  there  was  a 
watchman  there. 

We  soon  came  to  a  little  white  school  house  on  the 
left  turn  of  the  road  and  he  said  he  would  put  Price's 
body  there  and  burn  the  building,  but  it  was  raining  so 
hard  he  was  afraid  he  could  not  have  a  good  fire,  so  he 
ordered  me  to  drive  down  to  the  spot  where  the  body 
was  later  found.  Birger  ordered  me  to  stop  and  or- 
dered Price's  body  taken  out  of  the  car  and  Birger 
walked  in  the  field.  As  they  took  Price  from  the  car 
his  arm  fell  on  my  shoulder  and  I  noticed  on  his  finger 
was  a  Masonic  ring.  He  said  to  me :  **0  Art,  I  thought 
you  was  a  friend  of  mine."  And  I  said:  "Lory,  I'll 
kill  that  for  this." 

They  then  took  Price's  body  over  in  the  field  and 
threw  it  down  and  I  heard  Birger  cry  out  when  they 
let  him  down  "you  will  never  talk  against  any  of  my 
boys  again."  I  heard  eight  shots  and  Birger  came 
back  with  the  blood  stained  canvas  in  his  hand.  I  said 
to  Birger,  "what  are  you  going  to  do  with  the  canvas?" 
"I  am  going  to  wrap  Price's  pistol  in  it  and  throw 
in  on  the  burning  pile  of  rubbish  at  the  Dowell  mine." 
Wooten  and  Ritter  got  in  the  car  with  me  and  we 
drove  to  West  Frankfort  to  Ritter's  home.  On  the 
way  to  West  Frankfort  Ritter  told  me  that  they  took 
Mrs.  Price  away  immediately  after  we  left  with  Price. 
He  said  she  did  not  say  a  word,  did  not  ask  where  she 
was  going.    When  we  stopped  at  the  mine  and  ordered 

32 


her  out  Schroeder  shot  her  twice  in  the  back  as  she 
stepped  on  the  running  board.  She  screamed  and  fell 
on  her  face.  Ritter  shot  her  twice  in  the  back  as  she 
lay  on  the  ground.  He  said  they  then  picked  her  up 
and  threw  her  in  the  pit 

The  Finding  of  Mrs.  Price's  Body. 

The  body  of  Mrs.  Lory  Price,  wife  of  a  slain  Illi- 
nois highway  patrolman,  was  found  at  12:10  p.  m.,  on 
Monday,  June  13,  1927,  in  the  shaft  of  an  abandoned 
mine  near  Marion. 

Discovery  of  the  body  appeared  to  bear  out  the 
testimony  of  Art  Newman,  former  henchman  of  Char- 
lie Birger,  that  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Price  were  slain  on  the 
sam.e  night  by  members  of  the  Birger  gang.  Price's 
body  was  found  in  a  field  in  Washington  county  in 
February,  1927,  where  Newman  said  it  was  left  after 
Birger  pumped  it  full  of  machine  gun  bullets. 

The  head  of  the  body  was  first  uncovered.  Four 
workmen  were  in  the  pit  at  the  time.  When  it  became 
visible  they  called  Coroner  George  Bell  and  Sheriff 
Oren  Coleman  into  the  shaft.  Everyone  else  left.  Or- 
en  Coleman  was  the  sheriff  who  succeeded  George  Gal- 
ligan  as  sheriff  of  Williamson  county.  Coleman  had 
a  gratifying  record  before  accepting  the  office  as  sher- 
iff and  did  great  work  as  sheriff. 

The  officials  examined  the  part  of  the  body  ex- 
posed and  announced  they  were  certain  of  the 
identification.    The  remains  were  removed  at  once. 

The  body  was  badly  decomposed.  The  hair  was 
drawn  far  back  from  the  forehead.  The  rest  of  the 
remains  were  kept  covered.  The  body  lay  face  up,  ap- 
parently as  it  had  fallen  when  thrown  into  the  shaft. 

33 


It  is  said  that  Mrs.  Price  was  soon  to  have  given  birth 
to  a  child  when  she  was  murdered. 

Tin  cans,  parts  of  automobiles  and  other  refuse 
covered  the  body.  The  assassins  spent  a  half  hour 
throwing  debris  into  the  shaft  over  the  body.  Feeling 
ran  high  for  some  time  after  the  finding  of  the  body  of 
Mrs.  Price,  and  Birger  who  was  in  jail  in  Benton 
charged  with  the  complicity  with  the  murder  of  Joe 
Adams  and  also  with  that  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lory  Price, 
was  moved  to  the  jail  in  Springfield,  the  State  Capitol. 
Later  he  was  brought  back  to  the  Franklin  county  seat 
for  trial.  At  first  it  seemed  as  if  a  mob  would  be  or- 
ganized and  tear  down  the  Benton  jail  and  lynch  Bir- 
ger. However,  things  went  smoothly  and  nothing  hap- 
pened. 

A  large  crowd  gathered  around  the  pit  and  Dale 
Jones,  of  Ozark,  Mo.,  Mrs.  Price^s  father,  identified 
the  body  and  had  it  prepared  for  burial.  The  body 
was  found  33  feet  9  inches  from  the  ground  level,  un- 
der a  mass  of  timbers,  iron  roofing  and  automobile 
parts  and  other  debris. 

The  body  was  discovered  by  Walter  Schmitt  and 
J.  R.  Jelly  of  Royalton,  and  Dick  McNail  and  Edw^ard 
Anderson  of  Energ3\  The  discovery  was  made  just 
after  the  workers  had  changed  shifts. 

The  task  of  removing  the  body  from  the  muck 
and  mire  of  the  mine  was  a  difficult  one.  It  became 
necessary  for  the  men  to  discard  their  shovels  and  use 
wooden  paddles  in  removing  the  remains  of  the  mur- 
dered woman  from  the  mud.  The  odor  in  the  mine  be- 
came so  offensive  that  it  was  difficult  for  the  men  to 
continue  their  labors.  There  was  a  solemn  atmosphere 
about  the  place  as  the  hundreds  who  had  gathered  to 
watch  the  victim  of  the  most  horrible  murder  that 

34 


ever  perpetrated  in  southern  Illinois  be  taken  from  the 
mine,  bared  their  heads  in  respect  of  the  highway  pa- 
trolman's wife.  Unemployed  miners  helped  dig  out 
the  body.  A  large  crowd  stood  near  constantly  and 
interest  was  intense. 

A  special  grand  jury  indicted  Charlie  Birger,  Con- 
nie Ritter,  Leslie  Simpson,  Ernest  Balleau  and  Riley 
"Alabama"  Simmons  before  the  body  was  found.  At 
this  time  Harvey  Dungey,  former  friend  of  Birger, 
said  he  had  confessed  to  John  Stack,  chief  of  Illinois 
Highway  Police,  that  the  story  told  by  Art  Newman 
was  the  truth. 

Charlie  Birger  at  this  time  was  in  jail  in  Spring- 
field, Illinois,  waiting  for  trial  on  July  6,  1927,  at  Ben- 
ton, Illinois,  for  the  murders  of  Joe  Adams  and  Lory 
Price.  When  asked  about  his  condition  Birger  told  a 
guard  in  the  jail  to  leave  him  alone,  that  it  looked  as  if 
the  jig  was  up.  Later  he  declared  that  NewTnan  was 
lying  to  shield  himself.  Newman  came  back  with  the 
w^ords  that  Birger  was  lying  and  trying  to  "frame" 
Newman. 

At  this  time,  July,  1927,  the  trial  of  Eural  Gowan 
and  Rado  Millich  for  the  murder  of  Ward  Jones  was 
going  on  in  Marion.  Witnesses  testified  on  one  side 
just  opposite  the  testimony  of  the  other  side,  showing 
that  no  one  cared  to  lie  about  the  matter.  The  defense 
declared  that  Harry  Thomasson  told  them  that  he 
swore  falsely  for  the  state  but  that  the  officers  were 
no  longer  nice  to  him  and  he  didn't  care  for  anyone 
knowing  he  swore  falsely. 

As  this  trial  was  nearing  its  end  and  Birger  was 
preparing  for  his  trial  on  Wednesday,  the  sixth.  It 
looked  as  if  the  trial  would  be  postponed  through 
complaints  of  the  defense.    The  prosecution  announced 

35 


it  was  ready  to  commence.  Birger^s  wife  was  staying 
in  Benton  and  doing  everything  possible  for  Birger. 
It  was  reported  that  she  tried  in  many  ways  to  stir  up 
a  feeling  of  pity  for  Birger.  At  this  time  the  legislat- 
ure of  Illinois  was  fighting  hard  to  pass  a  law  substit- 
uting electrocution  for  hanging  in  cases  of  the  death 
penalty.  In  the  previous  month,  June  17,  1927,  Joe 
Chesnas,  22,  was  hanged  by  Sheriff  Lige  Turner  at 
Harrisburg  in  the  Saline  county  jail  yard  for  the  mur- 
der of  William  Unsell,  aged  mail  carrier  of  Harrisburg. 
Only  a  few  months  prior  to  the  hanging  of  Chesnas, 
Joe  "Peck"  Smith  of  Gallatin  county  was  hanged  by 
Sheriff  Green  in  the  Shawneetown  jail  yard  for  the 
murder  of  his  wife.  He  was  convicted  on  circumstan- 
tial evidence  and  maintained  his  innocence  to  the  last. 
He  took  his  execution  very  calmly.  Joe  Chesnas,  the 
Harrisburg  youth  who  was  hanged  on  June  17  in  Har- 
risburg, had  pleaded  guilty  and  took  death  very  calm- 
ly. He  smiled  and  winked  at  a  spectator  just  before 
the  black  cap  was  adjusted.  Chesnas  was  supposed  to 
have  been  a  friend  of  Charlie  Birger.  The  writer  of 
this  article  talked  with  Chesnas  before  his  death  and 
the  young  man  seemed  to  regret  his  life  of  crime  not 
at  all.    He  was  sentenced  by  Judge  A.  E.  Somers. 

In  the  trial  of  Eural  Gowan,  19  year  old  youth, 
and  Rado  Millich,  Montenegrin,  for  the  murder  of 
Vv^ard  Jones,  Millich  said  he  was  the  only  one  to  shoot 
Jones,  this  act  being  in  self  defense.  He  claimed  he 
shot  four  times  with  a  rifle  after  Jones  had  fired  at 
him  from  behind  with  machine  gun.  Millich  testified 
Gowan  took  no  part.  Others  swore  Gowan  took  no 
part  while  some  swore  they  saw  Gowan  shoot  Jones 
with  a  revolver.  State's  Attorney  Arlie  0.  Boswell 
said  he  would  prove  to  the  jury  that  Jones  was  tortur- 

36 


QUS    ADAMS 

(Brother of  Joe  Adams) 


ed  and  then  killed  by  Gowan  and  Millich  and  later 
thrown  in  a  creek  near  Equality.  Jones  was  killed 
following  a  quarrel  and  one  witness  testified  that  Bir- 
ger  ordered  him  killed  after  he  had  been  wounded  by 
Gowan  and  Millich. 

On  Tuesday,  July  5,  1927,  the  writer  of  this  ar- 
ticle had  gotten  much  information  on  the  trial  and 
wrote  in  the  paper  he  was  with  at  that  time  the  fol- 
lowing sketch  concerning  the  preparedness  of  Frank- 
lin county  authorities  for  the  big  trial. 

Three  machine  guns  and  30  deputy  sheriffs,  arm- 
ed to  the  teeth,  were  on  guard  today  about  the  F  ranklin 
county  jail  and  courthouse  to  prevent  any  possible  out- 
break in  connection  with  the  trial  of  Charlie  Birger, 
southern  Illinois  gang  leader ;  Art  Newman,  his  former 
henchman,  and  Ray  "Izzy"  Hyland. 

A  posse  of  1000  men  have  been  placed  in  readi- 
ness to  appear  at  short  notice.  The  authorities  are 
taking  no  chances  of  any  further  sensational  develop- 
ments of  a  trial  that  promises  to  disrupt  gangdom  in 
the  southern  part  of  the  state. 

Birger,  Newman  and  Hyland  are  to  be  tried,  be- 
ginning Wednesday,  for  the  slaying  of  Joe  Adams, 
300  pound  mayor  of  West  City,  111.,  who  was  called 
to  the  porch  of  his  home  last  autumn  and  riddled  with 
bullets. 

And  thusly  the  officers  of  Franklin  county  pre- 
pared for  the  big  trial.  Williamson  county  at  this  time 
was  trying  hard  to  get  the  trial  of  Birger  in  connection 
with  the  killing  of  Lory  Price  and  wife  to  be  held  in 
Marion.  Birger's  men  were  alleged  to  have  taken  part 
in  the  killing,  had  already  been  indicted  by  a  Washing- 
ton county  grand  jury.     Price's  body  was  found  in 

37 


Washington  county.  Much  interest  was  being  shown 
over  the  trial  of  Birger  and  his  men  for  the  murder  of 
big  Joe  Adams.  Thousands  were  expected  to  jam  the 
streets  of  Benton  on  the  day  of  the  trial  of  the  gang- 
sters. Harry  Thomasson  had  already  been  sentenced 
to  life  imprisonment  after  a  confession  and  plea  of 
guilt.  He  was  to  be  used  as  a  star  witness  for  the  state 
against  Hyland,  Newman  and  Birger.  His  brother, 
Elmo,  died  in  the  fire  that  destroyed  Birger's  Shady 
Rest.  Newman  accused  Birger  of  having  the  place 
burned  to  get  rid  of  its  occupants  who  ''knew  too 
much."  Just  before  the  trial  public  opinion  was  that 
Birger  and  his  gang  was  guilty — in  the  first  degree — 
and  should  be  punished  accordingly.  A  few  seemed  to 
think  that  the  gangsters  who  confessed  and  turned 
state's  evidence  should  be  dealt  with  lightly,  as  in  the 
case  of  Clarence  Rone  in  the  trial  following  the  killing 
of  Ward  Jones. 

CHAPTER  9. 

This  Chapter  Deals  with  the  Trial  of  Charlie  Birger, 

Newman  and  Hyland  in  Connection  with  the 

Murder  of  Joe  Adams. 

Also  Ward  Jones  Trial  in  Marion. 

Guarded  on  all  sides  by  thirty  special  deputies, 
^'Machine  Gun  Charlie"  Birger,  notorious  southern 
Illinois  gangster,  and  two  of  his  former  henchmen.  Art 
Newman  and  Ray  "Izzy  the  Jew"  Hyland,  were  escort- 
ed into  the  courtroom  at  Benton,  Illinois,  July  6,  1927, 
to  defend  themselves  against  charges  of  murdering 
Mayor  Joe  Adams  of  West  City,  in  Franklin  county. 

38 


The  courtroom  was  packed  to  capacity  long  before 
the  three  defendants  were  taken  from  the  jail  and 
brought  in  for  trial.  Crowds  of  curious  bystanders 
thronged  the  yards  below  and  Sheriff  James  Pritchard 
experienced  difficulty  in  taking  the  prisoners  from 
the  jail  to  the  court  house. 

While  no  announcement  was  made  when  the  pris- 
oners were  brought  in  concerning  the  procedure  the 
defense  will  take  to  save  the  gangsters  from  conviction, 
it  was  understood  the  attorney  for  Newman  would  at- 
tack the  indictment,  charging  that  the  grand  jury 
which  returned  it  was  ''handpicked."  The  state  was 
relying  upon  the  testimony  of  its  star  witness,  Harry 
Thomasson,  former  Birgerite,  to  convict  the  men. 
Thomasson  made  a  confession  that  he  and  his  brother 
Elmo,  now  dead,  were  paid  $50  by  Birger  to  kill  Adams. 

Birger  sat  in  the  courtroom  and  watched  fate. 
His  first  act  upon  entering  the  court  room  was  to  kiss 
his  wife  and  two  children.  The  work  of  selecting  the 
jury  was  begun  shortly  before  noon. 

A  motion  to  quash  the  indictment  against  the 
three  defendants  was  introduced  by  their  attorneys 
shortly  after  they  were  brought  into  court.  Judge 
Charles  H.  Miller  was  to  rule  on  the  motion  later.  The 
defense  attorneys  presented  the  motion  on  the  grounds 
that  the  grand  jury  which  indicted  the  men  had  been 
illegally  drawn  and  therefore  was  not  vested  with 
proper  power.  They  contended  that  the  venire  of 
the  grand  jury  was  issued  and  returned  the  same  day 
and  only  a  few  minutes  apart. 

When  the  court  reconvened  for  the  afternoon  ses- 
sion R.  E.  Smith  of  the  Birger  counsel  was  introduc- 
ing evidence  in  an  effort  to  support  his  motion.  The 
work  of  selecting  the  jury  had  not  at  that  time  begun. 

39 


Attorneys  for  Hyland  were  trying  to  prove  he 
was  not  the  driver  of  the  car  as  alleged  by  Thomasson. 

State's  Attorney  Roy  Martin  of  Franklin  county 
believed  that  he  had  sufficient  evidence  to  place  the 
noose  around  the  neck  of  each  defendant. 
Jury  Takes  Ward  Jones  Case. 

At  this  time,  July  6,  in  Marion,  the  jury  in  the 
trial  of  Rado  Millich  and  Eural  Gowan,  charged  with 
the  murder  of  Ward  Jones,  took  the  case  and  retired 
to  their  room  after  the  final  pleas  of  State's  Attorney 
Arlie  0.  Boswell. 

The  state  sought  the  death  penalty  for  Gowan 
and  Milhch.  It  was  contended  that  the  two  defendants 
killed  Jones  at  Shady  Rest  and  later  threw  his  body 
into  North  Fork  creek  in  Gallatin  county.  Millich  ad- 
mitted killing  Jones  in  self  defense,  following  a  quar- 
rel, while  Gowan  denied  all  complicity  in  the  crime. 

In  the  sensational  final  arguments  before  the  jury 
State's  Attorney  Arlie  0.  Bosw^ell  of  Williamson  county 
pleaded  with  the  jurors  to  assess  the  death  penalty  and 
*'put  an  end  to  the  reign  of  terror  created  by  Charlie 
Birger  and  his  infamous  band  of  murderers." 

''We  don't  have  to  go  to  Franklin  county,"  declar- 
ed Boswell,  ''for  men  to  bring  our  criminals  to  justice, 
you  men  are  courageous." 

Attorneys  for  the  defendants  argued  Millich  and 
Gowan  were  not  real  offenders  but  only  "hangers  on" 
of  Birger's  gang  while  the  slain  man  was  *'Birger's 
trusted  lieutenant." 

Result  of  Ward  Jones  Murder  Trial  At  Marion. 

Rado  Millich  and  Eural  Gowan  were  found  guilty 
of  the 'murder  of  Ward  Jones,  a  fellow  gangster,  at 
iMarion  on  July  7,  by  the  jury  that  heard  their  case  in 
Williamson  county  circuit  court. 

40 


Punishment  for  Millich  was  fixed  at  death  and  for 
Gowan  25  years  imprisonment  in  the  Chester  peniten- 
tiary. 

The  jury  reached  its  verdict  early  on  the  7th  after 
12  hours  of  dehberation.  It  was  sealed  and  turned 
over  to  the  authorities  to  be  read  at  the  opening  of 
Judge  HartwelFs  court  at  9 :30  a.  m. 

The  lengthy  deliberations  were  over  the  penalty 
to  be  imposed  on  Millich,  members  of  the  jury  told, 
after  their  dismissal.  The  jurors  could  not  agree 
whether  to  recommend  death  or  life  imprisonment. 
MilHch  admitted  at  the  trial  that  he  shot  and  killed 
Jones,  a  bartender  at  Charlie  Birger's  roadhouse,  but 
pleaded  self  defense.  Gowan  denied  any  part  in  the 
slaying. 

Millich  by  terms  of  the  verdict,  would  be  electro- 
cuted under  the  new  Illinois  capital  punishment  law,. 
electrocution  replacing  hanging.  Millich  was  the  first 
to  be  sentenced  to  death  since  then  the  law  was  passed. 

The  trial  of  Millich  and  Gowan  was  the  first  on 
charges  of  murder  resulting  from  the  long  gang  feud 
in  southern  Illinois  which  is  credited  with  a  large 
death  toll. 

A  large  crowd  in  the  court  room  rushed  forward 
to  congratulate  jurors  immediately  after  the  formality 
of  reading  the  verdict. 

The  defendants  were  immediately  removed  to  the 
Williamson  county  jail,  where  they  were  to  await  sen- 
tencing by  Judge  Hartwell.  Gowen  made  no  comment, 
but  Millich  protested  that  the  trial  was  a  "frame-up." 
He  cursed  all  the  way  back  to  his  cell. 

Jones,  according  to  evidence  at  the  trial,  was  shot 
down  by  Millich  during  a  quarrel  at  Shady  Rest,  the 

41 


fort  of  the  Birger  gang.  The  evidence  showed  also 
that  he  was  assisted  by  Gowan. 

Millich,  a  middle  aged  Montenegrin,  serving  a 
term  in  the  Chester  penitentiary,  testified  in  his  own 
behalf,  saying  that  he  shot  Jones  in  self  defense.  His 
attorneys  said  they  would  appeal  the  case.  Gowan's 
attorneys  said  he  would  not  appeal. 

Throughout  the  trial,  State's  Attorney  Arlie  Bos- 
well  pleaded  for  a  death  verdict  to  help  clear  the  name 
of  ''Bloody  Williamson."  There  were  two  ministers 
on  the  jury,  one  of  them  foreman. 

Continuation  of  the  Trial  of  Birger,  Hyland  and  New- 
man at  Benton,  Illinois  for  Murder  of  Joe  Adams. 

The  picking  of  the  jury  in  the  trial  of  Charlie  Bir- 
ger, Art  Newman  and  Ray  Hyland  for  assisting  in  the 
murder  of  Joe  Adams,  Mayor  of  West  City,  began  on 
July  8,  1927,  at  Benton,  Illinois. 

Birger's  attorneys  moved  for  a  spearate  trial 
from  Art  Newman,  and  Newman  made  a  motion  to 
have  a  separate  trial  from  Birger.  Hyland  threw  his 
lot  with  Birger.  Birger  then  demanded  that  he  be 
tried  before  a  jury  composed  of  ladies  or  a  mixed  jury. 
Charles  Karch  of  Birger's  counsel  made  a  motion  for 
a  bill  of  particulars.  A  motion  to  quash  the  indictment 
of  the  three  men  was  made.  Judge  Charles  A.  Miller 
heard  all  the  motions  and  then  denied  everyone  of 
them.  Continuance  of  trial  was  denied  and  the  selec- 
tion of  the  jury  began.  A  large  crowd  was  present  and 
the  sheriff  had  a  large  armed  force  aiding  in  keeping 
order. 

The  defendants  were  brought  into  the  court  room 
one  at  a  time  under  guard.  They  appeared  calm  and 
indifferent  and  acted  as  though  they  did  not  realize 

42 


that  the  state  was  trying  to  exact  their  lives.  They 
greeted  their  families  and  friends  and  Birger  sat  with 
one  of  his  daughters  on  his  lap.  He  was  unsuccessful 
when  he  tried  to  induce  her  to  allow  him  to  pull  one 
of  her  teeth  which  was  loose.  Newman  and  Birger 
paid  little  attention  of  the  other  at  first.  Later  they 
scowled  across  the  table  and  cursed  one  another.  Hy- 
land  sat  back  and  grinned  and  whispered  to  one  of  the 
defense  attorneys.  The  court  room  was  large  enough  to 
hold  the  crowds.  Not  so  many  people  attended  as  was 
expected.  The  court  then  told  the  attorneys  to  start 
examining  for  witnesses. 

At  recess  of  the  court  Newman  told  C.  E.  Hoiles, 
president  of  the  Bond  County  State  bank  at  Pocahon- 
tas, 111.,  that  he  drove  the  car  used  by  three  robbers 
some  time  ago  and  assisted  two  of  Birger's  men  in 
robbing  the  bank.    This  happened  in  November,  1926. 

He  said  Birger  sent  the  men  and  that  Birger  got 
one-fifth  of  the  loot  as  his  part.  They  took  $10,000 
from  the  bank.  Newman  displayed  a  scar  on  his  hand 
which  he  said  he  received  when  shot  by  citizens  who 
opened  fire  on  the  fleeing  car. 

Newman  also  told  that  Birger  killed  Shag  Wor- 
sham  and  an  unknown  man  found  at  the  home  of  Ollie 
Potts  of  near  Marion,  whom  Newman  described  as 
Connie  Ritter's  sweetheart.  Birger  cursed  and  raved 
at  Newman  and  screamed  *'women  killer.'*  Newman 
scowled  and  cursed  back  and  said,  "if  they  don't  shut 
up  that  rat  there's  a  lot  more  that  can  be  told."  Birger 
shut  up. 

Both  men  then  controlled  themselves  and  the  trial 
went  on  quietly.  The  process  of  selecting  a  jury  was 
very  slow  and  tedious. 

The  general  public  throughout  the  southern  end 

43 


of  the  state  of  Illinois  was  at  this  time  wondering  if 
much  of  gangland  mysteries  would  be  brought  to  light 
in  the  trial  at  Benton.  The  topic  of  the  day  was  Bir- 
ger  and  the  trial  in  Franklin  county.  Public  sentiment 
was  very  decidedly  against  Birger  and  his  gang,  al- 
though many  thought  Art  Newman  should  be  dealt 
with  less  harshly  than  Birger  and  his  men  because  he 
came  through  and  confessed. 

CHAPTER  10. 

Chapter  10  Deals  with  More  Details  Concerning  the 

Trial  of  Birger,  Newman  and  Hyland  Before 

the  Selection  of  the  Jury  Was  Completed  At 

Benton,  Illinois. 

Rado   Millich   Charges  Numerous   Crimes 

to  Man  He  Killed. 

Rado  Millich,  in  trying  to  get  another  trial  for  the 
murder  of  Ward  Jones,  came  out  with  a  statement  to 
the  public  covering  the  crime.  Millich  did  not  deny 
killing  Jones,  but  is  positive  in  his  stand  that  it  was 
done  in  self  defense.  He  tried  to  exonerate  Eural 
Go  wan  of  any  complicity  with  the  crime. 

In  his  statement  in  broken  English,  the  Montene- 
grin miner  declared  that  he  killed  Jones  with  a  rifle 
belonging  to  State's  Attorney  Arlie  Boswell,  of  Wil- 
liamson county,  and  when  Boswell  heard  this  story  he 
replied :  **If  Millich  got  a  rifle  from  me,  when  did  he 
get  it,  and  why  in  the  devil  doesn't  he  bring  it  home?'' 
and  laughingly  commented  further  that  "the  story  was 
among  the  best  he  had  ever  heard." 

44 


MRS.  JOE  ADAMS 


Millich  charged  unsolved  killings  to  Clarence  Rone 
Harry  Thomasson  and  Danny  Brown  Parker,  and  cited 

them  as  the  class  of  witnesses  used  against  him.  Nu- 
merous killings  were  recounted  by  Millich,  which  in- 
cluded that  of  *'Shag"  Worsham,  who  was  slain  in 
Zeigler  and  his  body  believed  to  have  been  disposed  of 
in  a  barn  that  was  burned. 

Ward  Jones,  Millich  says,  tried  to  kill  him,  but 
could  not  shoot  straight  enough  to  do  the  job,  which 

was  the  only  reason  he  was  not  ''bumped  off"  by 
Jones. 

The  slaying  of  ''Wild  Biir^  Holland,  18,  is  also  re- 
counted in  the  statements  of  Millich.  Holland's  body 
according  to  Millich,  was  riddled  by  28  bullet  wounds. 

On  the  same  night  Holland  was  killed  Millich  de- 
clares that  it  was  Ward  Jones  who  shot  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Max  Pulliam,  and  that  the  reason  they  were  not  killed 
was  because  Jones*  machine  gun  jammed. 

Millich  denied  ever  being  a  gangster  or  of  having 
v/orked  for  either  Newman  or  Birger  and  that  all  he 
had  told  was  the  truth.  He  said  that  if  he  was  forced 
to  die  he  would  die  with  a  load  off  his  mind. 

While  the  trial  of  Birger,  Newman  and  Hyland 
was  going  on  in  Benton  for  the  killing  of  Joe  Adams, 
the  attorneys  of  Millich  were  trying  to  solicit  funds 
for  his  appeal.  They  went  to  the  local  union  Millich 
belonged  to  and  to  his  friends. 

On  the  11th  of  July,  1927,  it  was  declared  that  all 
death  sentences  would  be  carried  out  by  hanging,  only 
in  case  w^here  the  murder  had  taken  place  before  the 
new  law  for  electrocution  took  effect.  Therefore  Mil- 
lich would  be  sentenced  to  hang. 

On  July  9,  1927,  Floyd  "Jardown"  Arms  of  Her- 

45 


rin,  Shelton  gangster,  started  an  eight  year  sentence 
at  Chester  penitentiary  following  conviction  on  a  sta- 
tutory charge. 

At  this  time,  July  11,  1927,  Monday,  much  hagg- 
ingly  and  commenting  was  going  on  in  Egypt  concern- 
ing the  trial  of  the  gangsters  at  Benton.  The  writer, 
who  at  this  time,  was  with  the  Eldorado  News,  made 
a  trip  throughout  the  entire  traversable  districts  of 
Egypt  and  talked  with  gangsters,  officers,  good  and 
bad  citizens,  newspaper  men  and  professional  and 
business  men  and  clergymen. 

The  writer  noticed  that  progressive  citiznes  and 
honest  business  men  in  Egypt  had  declared  that  gang 
war  should  stop.  And  that  they  would  do  all  in  their 
power  to  see  that  it  did  stop.  Two  Benton  bankers 
stated  that  the  mine  riots,  Klan  war  and  gang  war 
had  cost  the  south  end  of  the  state  over  $20,000,000.00 
and  there  was  no  exaggeration  in  the  figures. 

Although  much  was  brought  to  light  that  the 
gangsters  had  done  and  there  was  much  that  was  not 
told  which  they  had  done,  many  deeds  with  which  they 
had  nothing  to  do  were  credited  to  them.  Old  murders 
and  robberies  were  blamed  on  the  gangsters  and  wild 
rumors  of  confessions  swept  the  country  for  several 
weeks.  It  was  the  Jesse  James  scene  played  all  over 
again. 
Birger  Denied  Every  Charge  Brought  Up  by  Newman. 

Birger  at  this  time,  in  early  July,  was  charged  by 
Newman  with  the  murder  of  Jimmie  Stone,  whose  dead 
body  was  found  sitting  upright  in  a  ditch  near  Marion 
with  a  cigar  jammed  into  the  mouth,  in  December  1926. 
Birger  denied  the  charge.  He  also  denied  any  know- 
ledge of  Lyle  **Shag'*  Worsham  murder  or  of  the  Poch- 

46 


antos  bank  robbery,  in  which  Newman  implicated  his 
former  chief  during  a  bitter  cross  fire  of  interviews 
with  newspaper  men. 

Birger  contended  that  he  would  be  able  to  estab- 
lish his  innocence  of  all  these  charges  when  brought 
to  trial. 

Birger,  in  all  his  denial,  said  he  had  served  three 
years  in  the  U.  S.  Army  and  had  an  honorable  dis- 
charge. He  also  claimed  that  he  was  a  native  born 
American  citizen  and  that  the  people  would  know  the 
reason  for  the  many  accusations  against  him  before 
the  trial  was  over. 

Jimmie  Stone  was  found  dead  with  a  note  pinned 
to  his  flesh  which  said :  "He  stole  from  his  friends,'' 
and  was  signed :  "K.K.K."  On  the  night  of  December 
1,  1925,  two  men  called  at  the  home  of  Ollie  Potts,  in 
Harrisburg,  called  Stone  out  and  took  him  away  and 
that  was  the  last  time  he  was  seen  alive  by  the  Potts 
woman,  who  was  claimed  to  be  the  sweetheart  of  Con- 
nie Ritter.  Ritter  was  named  in  the  Pocahontas  bank 
robbery  with  Newman,  Frank  Schrader  and  "Okla- 
homa Slim"  McGuire.  The  confessions  of  Millich  and 
Newman  seem  to  run  together  on  this  story. 

During  the  selecting  of  a  jury  in  the  Adams  case 
the  attorneys  for  the  defense  were  thrown  into  a  panic 
a  number  of  times  by  Birger  and  Newman  cursing  and 
telling  on  each  other.  They  tried  several  times  to  get 
at  one  another.  At  this  time  several  newspapers  came 
out  with  the  statements  that  the  defense  would  plead 
insanity  as  a  result  of  the  bitter  verbal  war  of  Birger 
and  Newman. 

In  connection  with  the  Stone  murder     Newman 

said  to  Birger  when  Birger  called  him  a  " woman 

killing ,"  "I'll  shut  that  dirty  rat  up."    "Short- 

47 


]y  after  I  got  acquainted  with  the  'great  gang  leader' 
(sneeringly)  in  1924  he  told  me  that  he  and  Orb  Tread- 
way  (since  slain)  were  calling  on  Ollie  Potts,  who  is 
Connie  Ritter's  sweetheart.    She  lived  near  Marion. 

"They  found  a  man  there.  Treadway  forced  him 
into  a  car  and  Birger  shot  him  from  behind.  Then 
they  took  the  body  around  and  showed  it  to  several 
persons — never  mind  who  they  were.  They  stuck  a 
cigar  in  his  mouth,  sat  his  body  upright  in  a  ditch  and 
left  it." 

"If  that  doesn't  shut  up  that  rat,  tell  him  I'll 
speak  a  little  piece  about  w^ho  killed  'Shag"  Worsham. 
There's  a  lot  that  can  be  told.  So  I'm  a  woman  mur- 
derer? We'll  see."  No  more  talking,  the  defense  said 
and  Newman  shut  up.  A  defense  attorney  said:  "If  the 
stories  told  by  Ne^vman  should  be  true  both  of  these 
men  by  their  acts,  would  necessarily  prove  themselves 
to  be  paranoiacs,  two  maniacs  with  positive  homicidal 
tendencies,  and  should  be  dealt  with  accordingly." 

At  intervals  of  the  trial  Birger  would  smoke  with 
his  guard  and  go  with  him  to  get  a  drink  and  kept  up 
quit€  a  conversation  on  various  topics.  He  would  al- 
ways address  his  body  guard  when  he  wanted  to  go 
get  something  as  "you  and  I."  Harry  Thomasson  who 
was  a  star  witness  of  the  state,  was  anxious  to  go  back 
to  the  penitentiary  where  he  was  serving  a  life  term 
so  he  could  study  his  music.  He  was  playing  the  cor- 
net. He  said  Hyland  drove  the  car  he  and  his  brother 
rode  in  to  kill  Joe  Adams. 

As  time  passed  and  the  jury  had  not  been  selected 
and  panel  after  panel  exhausted,  crowds  jammed  the 
court  room  and  for  the  sake  of  giving  the  lawyers 
more  room  the  relatives  of  the  defendants  were  made 

48 


move  into  the  space  behind  the  railing  away  from  the 
defendants. 

Selecting  the  jury  was  a  most  tedious  job  and 
day  after  day  was  consumed  by  it  with  one  side  dis- 
missing those  selected  by  the  other  side.  Birger  and 
Newman  kept  up  their  verbal  fire.  Hyland  who  had 
served  in  the  U.  S.  Navy,  paid  little  attention  to  any- 
thing.   His  only  relative  that  attended  was  a  sister. 

State's  Attorney  Arlie  0.  Boswell  of  Williamson 
county  said  that  he  was  still  trying  hard  to  land  the 
Lory  Price  and  wife  murder  trial  for  Marion.  Birger 
and  a  gang  of  his  men  had  been  indicted  by  both  a 
Washington  and  Williamson  county  grand  jury  follow- 
ing the  confession  of  Art  Newman  to  a  Post-Dispatch 
reporter  from  St.  Louis  clearing  up  the  mysterious 
murders. 

CHAPTER  11. 

Chapter  11  Deals  with  More  of  the  Adams  Murder 

Trial  and  Things  Brought  to  Light  by 

Gangsters. 

On  July  12,  1927,  as  the  trial  of  Birger,  Newman 
and  Hyland  continued  there  was  a  rumor  that  Birger- 
ites  featured  in  the  Potter  tragedy  at  Marion  in  the 
fall  of  1926.  W.  0.  Potter  was  a  former  U.  S.  district 
attorney  for  eastern  Illinois.  Potter's  wife,  two  chil- 
dren and  two  grandchildren  were  found  slain  in  the 
Potter  home  and  Potter  was  found  dead  in  the  well 
outside  the  house.  The  heads  of  all  were  crushed. 
The  coroner's  jury  said  Potter  killed  his  family  and 
committed  suicide.  When  the  rumor  started.  State's 
Attorney  Boswell  started  a  new  investigation  to  try  to 

49 


throw  light  on  the  tragedy  which  shocked  even  bloody 
Williamson  county,  when  it  was  discovered. 

Since  Art  Newman  turned  on  his  former  chief- 
tain, he  had  been  accusing  him  of  the  responsibility  of 
one  murder  after  another  in  addition  to  the  one  which 
he,  Birger  and  *'Izzy"  Hyland  were  then  standing  trial 
for  in  Benton.  In  each  instance  evidence  was  uncover- 
ed which,   at  least,  in  part  seemed  to   confirm  his 

charges. 

This  latest  and  most  startling  development,  con- 
necting members  of  the  Birger  gang  with  the  death  of 
Attorney  Potter  and  family,  could  not  be  traced  direct- 
ly to  Newman,  but  information  was  sent  to  Williamson 
county's  prosecutor  that  if  he  succesfully  interrogated 
Rado  Millich,  a  fellow  conspirator,  he  might  uncover 
the  real  reason  for  the  Potter  deaths. 

Potter's  fingerprints  were  identified  on  the  stair- 
way leading  to  the  second  floor  of  the  house  where 
the  crime  was  committed.  It  was  also  revealed  that 
Potter  had  encountered  financial  difficulties  and  that 
he  was  responsible  for  the  tragedies  when  he  became 
temporarily  insane. 

State's  Attorney  Boswell  with  Sheriff  Oren  Cole- 
man and  Coroner  George  Bell,  questioned  Rado  Mil- 
lich in  the  Williamson  county  jail  where  he  was  await- 
ing execution.    He  had  been  sentenced  to  hang. 

"Millich  talked  of  Birger's  activities  in  gang  cir- 
cles but  denied  absolutely  he  had  knowledge  tending 
to  indicate  that  Birger  was  connected  with  the  death 
of  Attorney  Potter  and  members  of  his  family,"  Bos- 
well declared. 

**We  also  questioned  members  of  the  family,  but 
learned  nothing  to  change  our  belief  that  Potter  alone 

50 


caused  the  deaths  of  his  family  while  temporarily  in- 
sane." 

All  this  time  the  selection  of  the  jury  in  the  Ad- 
ams murder  case  went  on  very  slowly  and  exceptional- 
ly tedious.  Absolutely,  one  who  was  not  at  the  trial, 
cannot  imagine  the  red  tape  which  was  unwound  while 
selecting  the  jury.  Everything  that  ever  pertained  to 
clauses  of  law  was  brought  into  question  and  motions 
were  made  and  turned  down  and  attorneys  argued 
and  Ne\ATnan  and  Birger  cursed  each  other  and  Izzy 
Hyland  grinned  until  the  whole  thing  became  so  dis- 
gusting it  was  sickening. 

Attorneys  for  Hyland  asked  each  prospective  jur- 
or his  opinion  of  secret  orders,  of  Jews,  and  if  he  had 
ever  read  the  Dearborn  Independent,  the  paper  pub- 
lished by  Henry  Ford  opposing  the  Jews.  The  defense 
attorney's  at  first  turned  down  every  one  who  was  ex- 
amined if  he  did  not  come  up  to  their  expectations  as 
how  he  should  determine  secret  orders,  Jews,  gang- 
sters and  other  things  which  no  one  thought  of  before 
they  were  mentioned  in  the  trial. 

The  spectre  of  the  Ku  Klux  Klan  was  brought  into 
issue  when  defense  attorneys  for  Hyland  asked  pros- 
pective jurors  as  to  their  affiliation  with  secret  orders, 
religion,  race  and  so  on. 

Defense  attorneys  for  both  Birger  and  Newman 
said  that  neither  of  their  clients  would  be  allowed  on 
the  stand  as  they  were  afraid  that  the  defense  of  one 
would  tear  down  the  defense  of  the  other.  If  Birger 
and  Nevv^man  could  have  been  given  a  separate  trial 
they  undoubtedly  would  have  unloaded  much  on  each 
other.  However  Birger  said  that  he  had  no  unloading 
to  do  and  that  he  would  tell  nothing  that  Newman  or 
any  one  else  had  done.    He  also  maintained  his  inno- 

51 


cence  in  the  Adams  murder  and  said  he  would  prove  it. 

The  state's  attorney  and  assistants  came  out  with 
the  statement,  while  the  selection  of  the  jury  was  going 
on,  that  they  were  ready  to  combat  any  plea  made  by 
any  of  the  defense.  From  the  questions  asked  the  pros- 
pective jurors,  it  seemed  as  if  the  defending  attor- 
neys would  come  out  with  a  plea  of  self  defense,  in- 
sanity or  alibis  for  the  defendants. 

The  possibility  of  an  insanity  plea  being  offered 
in  Birger's  defense  made  its  first  actual  appearance 
officially  late  in  the  afternoon  of  July  11  when  Attor- 
ney Robert  E.  Smith  for  Birger  began  questioning 
veniremen  on  their  attitude  toward  insanity  as  a  de- 
fense plea  to  a  charge  of  murder.  He  was  taken  up 
almost  instantly  by  State's  Attorney  Martin  who  point- 
ed out  to  the  veniremen  that  before  a  prisoner  at  bar 
can  offer  a  plea  of  insanity  as  defense,  he  must  admit 
the  act  with  which  he  is  charged.  Smith  made  no  ref- 
erence to  it  as  a  possible  defense  after  that  during  the 
remainder  of  the  afternoon. 

Smith  also  questioned  veniremen  upon  their  atti- 
tude toward  self-defense  should  it  be  made  an  issue 
in  the  trial.  Such  a  plea  would  likewise  make  it  nec- 
essary for  the  defendant  to  admit  the  act  charged,  and 
a  plea  of  self  defense  in  this  case  would  be  regarded 
impossible  since  Birger  was  not  charged  with  the 
actual  killing. 

Alibis,  the  third  defense  to  be  used,  was  possibly 
the  strongest  of  the  three  and  was  used  heavily.  All 
three  defendants  were  preparing  to  prove  their  absence 
from  the  scene  of  the  killing  at  the  time  it  occurred. 
For  Birger  this  could  be  no  difficult  task.  Birger 
could  prove  that  he  was  on  the  Marion  public  square 

52 


talking  to  Arlie  Bos  well  when  the  shots  were  fired  that 
killed  Adams  in  West  City. 

Hyland  said  he  would  deny  knowledge  of  the  plot 
to  kill  Adams  and  that  he  drove  the  car  which  carried 
the  Thomasson  boys,  Harry  and  Elmo,  to  the  Adams 
home.  Hyland  said  he  would  offer  several  witnesses 
in  his  behalf  as  would  Newman  to  prove  he  was  other 
than  where  Thomasson  said  he  was. 

The  writer  will  take  time  here  to  tell  the  reader 
a  few  facts  concerning  the  court  room  while  the  selec- 
tion of  the  jury  was  going  on: 

The  crowd  which  occupied  every  seat  in  the  little 
court  room  of  the  old  Franklin  county  court  house  in 
Benton  in  early  July  began  to  lose  a  little  of  its  tena- 
city in  the  swelter  of  the  day  as  the  trial  wore  on  with 
the  attorneys  questioning  veniremen.  Rotating  fans 
played  a  breeze  of  cool  air  occasionally  upon  the  judge, 
attorneys  and  jurors,  but  for  the  spectators  back  of 
the  bar  railing,  there  was  no  relief  from  the  heat. 
Hearing  was  difficult,  also,  and  the  spectators  in  the 
back  of  the  room  could  do  little  more  than  watch  the 
pantomime  going  on  before  them  as  defendants  moved 
or  lawyers  made  gestures  of  one  sort  or  another,  in 
talking  to  the  prospective  jurors  sitting  in  cane  bot- 
tom chairs  upon  a  slightly  raised  platform  in  front  of 
the  counsel  tables. 

Occasional}^  two,  three  or  maybe  a  whole  row  of 
spectators  would  get  up  and  walk  down  the  broad 
center  aisle  to  the  steps  that  lead  to  the  first  floor  of 
the  court  house.  Their  places,  however,  were  soon 
filled  as  the  deputy  sheriffs  at  the  front  of  the  stairs 
let  just  as  many  people  ascend  as  had  descended  be- 
fore them.  No  crowding  was  permitted,  and  no  one 
was  allowed  to  ascend  the  stairs  until  the  officers  were 

53 


sure  there  was  a  vacant  seat  upstairs.  At  the  head 
of  the  stairway  a  short,  heavy  set  Httle  man  partly  gray 
and  partly  bald,  acted  as  usher,  and  he  found  the  vacant 
seats  for  those  who  were  permitted  to  enter.  Motion- 
ing to  the  persons  as  they  entered,  he  walked  down  the 
aisle  in  front  of  them  to  their  seats.  In  his  right  pocket 
he  carried  a  heavy  revolver,  the  weight  of  which  caus- 
ed his  trousers  sag  several  inches  lower  on  the  right 
than  on  the  left.  He  was  a  busy  man,  this  officer- 
usher,  and  his  job  of  guiding  his  ever  shifting  audience 
did  not  stop  until  the  court  was  over  for  the  day. 

Confusion  was  injected  into  that  little  court  house 
while  the  selection  of  the  jury  was  going  on  when  one 
afternoon  the  newsboys  with  their  papers  were  turned 
loose  upon  the  court  yard  below.  "All  about  Charlie 
Birger,"  was  their  loud  cry  and  they  cried  it  so  loud 
that  the  noise  penetrated  the  court  room  and  gave  com- 
petition to  the  voice  of  counsel.  Attorney  Robert 
Smith  of  Birger's  counsel  petitioned  the  court  to  stop 
the  noise  and  Judge  C.  H.  Miller  dispatched  Sheriff 
James  Pritchard  below  stairs  to  quell  the  uproar.  The 
sheriff  evidently  had  his  hands  full  as  it  was  full 
thirty  minutes  before  the  babel  in  the  court  yard 
ceased. 

During  the  first  five  days  of  the  trial  four  jurors 
were  tentatively  selected  by  both  sides.  They  were 
John  Krugg,  miner  of  Christopher;  Marion  Meeks, 
miner,  West  Frankfort;  Dave  Whitledge,  miner,  of 
West  Frankfort  and  Dow  Fisher,  laborer,  of  Whitting- 
ton.  Sixty  veniremen  had  been  dismissed  when  these 
four  were  chosen. 

54 


CHAPTER  12. 

Chapter  12  Deals  with  the  Talking  of  Millich;  Also 

More  of  the  Adams  Murder  Trial  at  Benton. 

Mrs.  Nellie  Worsham,  mother  of  Lyle  Worsham, 
visited  Rado  Millich  in  jail  at  Marion,  July  11,  in  hope 
of  getting  some  information  that  would  lead  to  the 
solution  of  her  son^s  mysterious  death. 

Millich  knew  Lyle,  better  known  as  *'Shag",  and 
Mrs.  Worsham  was  assured  by  Millich  that  he  would 
give  her  the  details  of  the  slaying,  who  did  it  and  for 
what  purpose  it  was  done. 

"Me  going  to  die,  Mrs.  Worsham,  and  we  will  tell 
you  all,"  was  the  final  promise  offered  to  Mrs.  Wor- 
sham by  Millich  at  that  time. 

Mrs4  Worsham  carried  a  life  insurance  policy  on 
her  son  Lyle,  but  was  never  able  to  collect  it,  owing 
to  the  demand  of  the  insurance  company  for  more 
positive  proof  of  the  death  of  her  son  that  had  not  then 
been  offered. 

While  Millich,  in  his  numerous  confessions  gave 
out  the  information  that  he  knew  all  about  the  slaying 
of  Shag  Worsham,  his  confession  would  not  be  accepted 
by  the  insurance  company. 

While  the  jury  was  still  being  sought  to  try  Bir- 
ger,  Newman  and  Hyland,  rumors  were  afloat  that 
gangsters  would  try  to  rescue  Millich  from  the  Marion 
jail  where  he  was  awaiting  execution  and  that  the 
gangsters  on  trial  in  Benton  would  be  rescued  by 
friends.  As  a  result  sharpshooters  with  highpowered 
rifles  and  machine  guns  were  placed  on  guard.  At  Ben- 
ton seven  extra  sharpshooters  with  highpow^ered  rifles 
were  added  to  the  guard  force. 

From  the  time  that  ended  the  trial  of  Rado  Millich 

55 


and  Eural  Gowan  in  connection  with  the  murder  of 
Ward  Jones,  to  July  14,  1927  $5,000  had  been  raised  to 
finance  an  appeal  from  the  death  sentence  imposed  by 
Williamson  county  circuit  court  on  Rado  Millich  for  the 
murder  of  Jones.  A  vigorous  campaign  was  gone 
through  with  in  raising  the  funds  for  the  appeal  to 
Judge  Hartwell. 

On  July  14  a  teriffic  wind  storm  struck  the  court 
house  and  vicinity  and  passed  on  without  doing  any 
damage.  Birger  said,  *'If  the  old  building  had  been 
wrecked,  I'd  be  blamed  for  it.  I've  been  blamed  for  al- 
most everything  else.  I'm  glad  the  old  shack  is 
still  standing." 

On  this  same  day  an  irate  cov/  attempted  to  de- 
stroy the  tireless  efforts  of  state  and  defense  in 
selecting  a  jury  for  the  case.  T^Irs.  Charles  R.  Francis, 
wife  of  one  of  the  accepted  jurors,  hobbled  into  the 
court  room  and  appealed  to  Judge  Charles  H.  Miller  to 
release  her  husband,  as  she  had  been  disabled  by  a  cow 
that  trampled  her  under  its  hoof.  There  was  no  one 
to  take  care  of  the  cow,  she  argued.  The  judge  ex- 
plained the  necessity  of  keeping  her  husband  in  the 
jury  box. 

"Your  arguments  are  silly,"  she  replied*  ''Let  me 
see  my  husband".  The  husband  was  called  into  an 
ante-room  and  they  embraced.  He  agreed  with  the 
judge.  "All  right,"  she  replied  in  a  tone  of  regret. 
"I  expected  that  so  I  brought  your  clothes.   Goodbye." 

The  decision  kept  the  second  panel  of  four  intact. 

Art  Newman,  willing  confessor  of  the  bad  deeds 
of  his  former  chieftain,  Charlie  Birger,  on  the  14th 
day  of  July  charged  his  co-defendant  in  the  Adams 
murder  trial  with  another  crime. 

Newman  said  Birger  furnished  two  pistols  to  a 
man  hired  to  shoot  Robert  R.  Ward,  president  of  the 

56 


Benton  State  Bank.  The  attempted  assassination  in 
December,  1926,  was  unsuccessful,  although  four  shots 
were  fired  through  the  living  room  of  Ward's  home, 
where  the  bank  president  was  standing.  The  attack- 
er escaped. 

The  man  who  hired  the  gunman  to  fire  the  shots, 
according  to  Newman,  was  angry  with  Ward  because 
of  a  foreclosure  deal. 

Newman  had  excited  newspapermen  in  the  court 
room  with  promises  of  "another  startling  confession," 
but  it  proved  to  be  milder  than  his  previous  confessions 
since  the  murder  trial  begun. 

Birger,  when  told  of  the  confession,  merely 
sneered,  declaring  "the  next  thing  he  will  charge  me 
with  having  fired  the  shot  that  killed  President  McKin- 
ley." 

Newman  said,  in  baring  his  latest  confession  of 
Birger  crimes,  the  gang  chieftain  loaned  the  guns  to  a 
man  who  gave  them  to  a  negro  to  kill  Ward.  The  fel- 
low received  one  gun  from  Birger  and  one  from  Steve 
George  at  Shady  Rest.  The  fellow  was  called  "Doc". 
He  wanted  to  let  George  do  the  kilKng  but  Birger  didn't 
want  George  to  leave  Shady  Rest*  Steve  George  and 
wife  were  among  those  who  were  burned  to  death  in 
the  destruction  of  Shady  Rest. 

On  the  15th  of  July,  just  after  the  selection  of 
the  jury  had  been  completed,  two  of  Chicago's  most  no- 
torious gunmen,  in  company  with  a  leading  criminal 
of  southern  Illinois  of  ten  years'  past,  appeared  at  the 
Birger  trial.  Their  pesence,  coupled  with  extra  pre- 
cautions taken  by  Sheriff  Pritchard  in  stationing  ex- 
pert marksmen  about  the  court,  caused  considerable 
apprehension  among  some  attending  the  trial,  and  all 
were  on  their  guard. 

A  pitiful  figure  in  the  courtroom  was  the  elderly 

57 


mother  of  the  slain  man,  who  wept  during  the  state- 
ment of  State's  Attorney  Martin.  The  prosecution 
opened  by  asking  death  for  all  three  of  the  defendants. 

At  this  time,  the  15th  of  July,  Robert  Torrese, 
Charles  Duchowski  and  Walter  Taleski  were  hanged 
from  a  triple  gallows  in  the  jail  yard  at  Joliet,  111.,  for 
the  killing  of  Peter  Klein,  deputy  warden  of  the  peni- 
tentiary there.  The  men  weref  hanged  at  dawn  by  the 
sheriff.  Each  of  the  murderers  went  to  their  death 
fearlessly.  More  than  seven  hundred  persons  wit- 
nessed the  hangings.  Blood  lust  of  the  Roman  arena 
v/as  pesent  as  the  mob  fought  for  vantage  points  to 
view  the  death  spectacle. 

CHAPTER  13. 

Chapter  13  Deals  with  the  Beginning  of   the   Adams 

Murder  Trail  Just  After  the  Selection  of  the  Jury 

Had  Been  Completed. 

The  selection  of  the  jury  in  the  Adams  murder 
case,  in  which  Charlie  Birger,  Art  Newman  and  Ray 
Hyland  were  on  trial  for  the  murder  of  Mayor  Joe 
Adams  of  West  City,  was  completed  at  11:15  on  the 
morning  of  July  14,  1927,  at  Benton,  Illinois. 

The  jurors  were:  John  Krug,  Christopher,  farmer- 
miner;  Marion  Meeks,  West  Frankfort,  miner;  Dave 
Whitledge,  West  Frankfort,  miner ;  Dow  Fisher,  Whit- 
tington,  laborer;  Charles  R.  Francis,  West  Frankfort 
township,  farmer-miner;  L.  A.  Gunn,  Cave  township, 
farmer;  Paul  Knight,  Thompsonville,  merchant,  the 
youngest  man  on  the  jury,  being  26  years  of  age;  F. 
C.  Downen,  Thomsponville,  farmer ;  F.  Marion  Warren, 
Eastern  township,  farmer;  Wm.  Hendricks,  Christo- 

58 


pher,  miner ;  Milo  Hopper,  West  Frankfort,  miner  and 
Harry  Simpson,  West  Frankfort  auto  salesman. 

The  last  four 'men  were  accepted  by  the  defense 
after  they  had  been  tendered  by  the  state  following 
but  a  few  moments  of  questioning  on  the  part  of 
defense  counsel.  Judge  Charles  H.  Miller,  before  whom 
the  case  was  being  tried,  at  once  ordered  the  jury 
sworn  in. 

With  the  selection  of  the  jury  completed  after 
more  than  four  days  of  interrogation  by  the  state  and 
defense  counsel,  the  stage  was  cleared  for  the  more 
dramatic  scenes  that  the  trial  was  to  present :  Specta- 
tors became  much  more  interested.  Newspapermen 
got  busy  with  their  cameras  and  then  court  was  re- 
cessed until  after  the  noon  hour  when  Staters  Attorney 
Roy  C.  Martin  made  his  opening  plea.  The  defense 
said  they  would  make  no  statements  until  they 
heard  the  prosecution  give  their  complete  outline  so 
they  would  know  the  nature  of  their  defense  better. 

The  prosecution  had  carefully  endeavored  to 
select  what  is  known  as  a  "hanging  jury."  The  de- 
fense had  been  equally  deliberate  in  an  effort  to  select 
a  jury  that  would  save  the  defendants  from  the  gal- 
lows. 

In  thundering  tones,  the  state's  attorney  recited 
the,  murder  story,  as  he  was  to  present  it  to  the  jury, 
going  back  to  the  day,  when  according  to  testimony 
that  the  state  was  to  present,  the  murder  of  Adams 
was  planned  at  Shady  Rest.  He  went  over  the  crime, 
step  by  step,  from  the  time  the  murder  car  left  Shady 
Rest  accompanied  by  another  car  in  which  leaders  of 
the  Birger  gang  were  alleged  to  have  accompanied  the 
killers  as  far  as  Marion. 

The  prosecuter  spoke  with  grim  resolution,  as  he 
pictured  the  cruel,  heartless  manner  in  which  the  mur- 

59 


der  of  Joe  Adams  was  planned  and  executed.  He 
charged  that  Charlie  Birger,  Art  Newman  and  Connie 
Hitter,  the  latter  under  indictment  at  that  time  and 
and  also  a  fugitive  from  justice,  planned  the  crime  and 
paid  Harry  and  Elmo  Thomasson  for  firing  the  shots 
that  killed  Adams,  known  to  have  been  the  friend  of 
the  Sheltons,  bitter  enemies  of  Birger.  The  State's 
Attorney  charged  that  Ray  Hyland  drove  the  car  and 
shared  equally  with  the  Thomassons  in  the  division  of 
the  blood  money  with  which  they  were  paid  for  the  suc- 
cess of  their  murderous  mission. 

None  of  the  Sheltons  were  at  the  trial  or  in  Ben- 
ton as  Sheriff  Pritchard  wrote  them  saying  that  he  did 
not  want  them  near  Benton  while  the  trial  was  going 
on.    They  promised  him  that  they  would  stay  away. 

The  prosecutor  said  that  he  would  not  introduce  the 
confession  of  Harry  Thomasson,  who  was  serving  a  life 
sentence  at  the  Chester  penitentiary  for  his  part  in  the 
crime.  Thomasson  was  placed  on  the  stand  as  a  wit- 
ness, however,  and  through  his  testimony  and  that  of 
more  than  a  hundred  other  witnesses,  Martin  hoped  to 
end  the  crime  career  of  Birger  and  his  gangsters  by 
placing  the  noose  around  the  necks  of  Birger,  Newman 
and  Hyland. 

Martin  first  recited  the  indictment  charging  the 
trio  on  trial  and  Connie  Ritter  and  Harry  Thomasson 
with  the  murder  of  Adams. 

It  was  Thomasson's  confession  that  resulted  in 
the  indictment  of  the  others. 

"The  evidence  in  this  case  ^\dll  show  that  Joe 
Adams  never  was  a  member  of  a  gang  or  had  any 
connection  with  the  gang,"  Martin  said. 

'The  evidence  will  show  that  Newman  and  Hy- 
land were  associated  with  Birger  at  Shady  Rest  at  the 
time  Joe  Adams  was  killed." 

60 


"It  will  show  Charlie  Birger  became  very  angry  at 
Joe  Adams  on  or  about  Oct.  15,  1926  for  some  unknown 
reason.  It  will  show  that  about  this  time  Birger, 
Newman  and  Hyland  rode  up  in  two  automobiles  loaded 
with  machine  guns  and  told  Adams  'You  big  doughbelly 
we  are  going  to  kill  you.'  " 

Martin  said  Adams  had  appealed  for  protection 
but  it  was  not  furnished.  Adams  then  had  some  men 
at  his  home  for  protection  and  Birger  charged  that  he 
was  harboring  the  Shelton  gang. 

*'Birger  often  declared  that  Franklin  county  was 
not  big  enough  to  keep  him  from  killing  Adams,"  Mar- 
tin continued.  "This  was  at  a  time  when  Franklin 
county  had  a  special  guard  in  West  City  to  keep  mem- 
bers of  both  the  Birger  and  Shelton  gangs  out  of  this 
county." 

Martin  continued  by  telling  the  jury  of  the  threats 
made  to  Gus  Adams  and  Mrs.  Joe  Adams  that  Birger 
and  his  gang  was  coming  over  to  kill  Joe.  He  continued 
to  shout  at  the  jury  that  he  would  hang  the  defendants. 

"We  have  picked  you  to  kill  Joe  Adams,"  Birger 
told  them,  according  to  Martin.  He  then  described 
how  the  boys  told  Ne\\Tnan  they  hadn't  killed  anyone 
before .  He  described  the  writing  of  the  note  which 
was  used  as  a  ruse  to  get  Adams  to  this  front  door  and 
the  actions  of  Hyland  as  the  driver  of  the  death  car. 
Birger,  the  state's  attorney  said,  forced  Elmo  Thomas- 
son  to  stay  at  Shady  Rest  that  night  when  the  boy$ 
asked  that  they  be  allowed  to  go  home.  Birger  threat- 
ened Harry,  Martin  charged,  that  if  he  didn't  return 
the  next  day  the  gang  would  come  and  get  him. 

Martin  then  detailed  how  the  boys  and  Hyland 
were  furnished  with  guns  and  given  whiskey  the  next 
day, — Dec.  1926 — the  day  of  the  murder. 

The  courtroom  was  deathly  silent.     Not  one  of 

61 


the  four  hundred  spectators  madd  a  sound.  The 
women,  who  comprised  almost  a  third  of  the  audience, 
waved  palm  leaf  fans  as  they  leaned  forward  to  hear 
Martin. 

Mrs.  Birger  tapped  her  fan  nervously  against  the 
back  of  a  chair  in  front  of  her  as  the  state's  attorney 
continued  his  outline  of  the  case. 

Martin  went  through  the  entire  details  and  de- 
manded the  death  sentence.  Birger  looked  more  nerv- 
ous than  he  did  at  the  beginning  of  the  selection  of 
the  jury.  This  time  Birger  was  facing  the  law  of  the 
state  of  Illinois — and  without  the  use  of  machine  guns 
and  armored  trucks.  As  time  wore  on  the  attention  at- 
tracted throughout  the  country  was  unimaginable.  A 
fight  to  the  finish  had  been  prepared  by  both  sides.  It 
was  rumored  at  the  trial  that  an  assistant  of  Clarence 
Darrow  of  Chicago,  noted  criminal  lawyer,  would  assist 
in  the  appeal  of  Rado  Millich  at  Marion  who  was  con- 
victed of  the  murder  of  Ward  Jones.  Should  Millich's 
appeal  fail  he  would  then  be  sentenced  and  hanged. 
Millich's  appeal  to  the  circuit  court  of  Williamson 
county  was  turned  down.  He  was  sentenced  to  hang 
on  Oct.  24,  1926. 

CHAPTER  14. 
Chapter  14  Deals  with  the  Taking  of  Evidence  in  the 
Adams  Murder  Trial  After  the  Opening  State- 
ments to  the  Court  and  to  the  Jury. 

On  the  morning  of  July  15,  1927,  State's  Attorney 
Roy  C.  Martin  started  weaving  the  net  of  evidence 
by  which  he  expected  to  be  able  to  send  Charlie  Birger, 
Newman  and  Hyland  to  the  gallows  for  the  murder  of 
Joe  Adams. 

62 


The  first  witness  introduced  in  the  state's  effort 
to  establish  the  guilt  of  Birger,  Newman  and  Hyland 
and  his  former  aids  was  Sheriff  James  Pritchard.  He 
was  followed  by  Sheriff  Oren  Coleman  of  Williamson 
county. 

Pinkney  Thomasson,  17,  brother  of  Harry  and 
Elmo,  supplied  the  first  evidence  for  the  state  which 
made  their  case  look  strong.  His  replies  were  clear 
and  strong  and  he  was  an  ideal  witness.  Through  his 
testimony  the  state  brought  out  that  Ray  Hyland  was 
with  Elmo  and  Harry  Thomasson  on  the  day  of  the 
Adams  murder. 

Roy  Adams  and  wife,  distant  relatives  of  the  slain 
man,  told  the  first  direct  story  of  the  killing  of  Joe 
Adams.  They  were  out  walking  on  the  afternoon  of 
the  murder  and  's^itnessed  the  shooting.  They  told  of 
tw^o  youths  passing  them  on  the  sidewalk.  The  first 
testimony  given  in  the  trial  w^as  more  damaging  to 
Hyland  than  to  Newman  and  Birger. 

Birgers  attorneys  at  this  time  came  out  with  the 
news  that  Birger  would  take  the  stand  later  in  the  trial 
in  the  defense  of  himself. 

Aviator  Admits  Dropping  Bomb  on  Shady  Rest. 

On  July  16,  it  was  asserted  that  Elmer  Kane,  26- 
year-old  aviator,  had  confessed  that  he  was  hired  to 
bomb  the  road  house  of  Charlie  Birger,  near  Marion. 

Police  of  Waterloo,  Iowa,  said  they  had  a  signed 
statement  from  Kane  to  the  effect  that  he  was  induced 
by  Mayor  Joe  Adams  of  West  City  and  Carl  and  Bernie 
Shelton,  to  undertake  to  blow  up  the  Birger  fortress 
from  the  air.. 

He  said  he  was  paid  §1,000  and  given  an  automo- 
bile for  his  work.  The  bombs  were  prepared  at  the 
home  of  Gus  Adams  in  West  City,  according  to  the 
confession,  and  plans  for  the  raid  were  made  there. 

63 


A  member  of  the  Shelton  gang,  unnamed  in  the 
confession,  threw  the  bombs  from  the  plane  while 
Kane  piloted  it,  it  was  said. 

Shady  Rest  was  bombed  Nov.  12,  1926.  Three 
bombs  were  dropped,  two  of  them  failing  to  explode 
and  a  third  missing  the  target.      None  was  injured. 

Gus  Adams,  brother  of  Joe,  declared  that  he  knew 
no  one  by  the  name  of  Elmer  Kane  and  nothing  of  the 
transactions  which  were  declared  to  have  taken  place 
in  his  home  in  connection  with  the  aerial  bombing  of 
Shady  Rest. 

At  the  opening  of  the  trial  many  witnesses  pointed 
out  Hyland  as  the  man  who  drove  a  Chrysler  automo- 
bile to  Joe  Adams'  home  just  as  he  was  killed. 

Birger  was  drawn  into  the  case  during  the  testi- 
mony in  the  afternoon  of  the  16th  when  witnesses  told 
of  the  gang  leader  having  openly  threatened  the  life  of 
the  West  City  mayor.  Waddell  True,  who  said  he 
operated  a  barbecue  stand  and  sold  home  brew  at  West 
City,  and  Gus  Adams,  supplied  the  first  direct  testi- 
mony against  Birger,  when  they  told  of  the  gang 
leader  announcing  that  "I  am  going  to  kill  that  dough 

bellied and  all  the law  in 

Franklin  county  can't  keep  me  ircm  it." 

True  said  Birger  came  into  his  place  with  a  num- 
ber of  men,  all  heavily  armed,  and  ordered  him  to  in- 
form the  officers  that  he  (Birger)  was  going  to  kill 
Adams. 

True  said  he  told  Birger  that  he  would  carry  no 
messages,  but  that  when  Birger  ''jammed  his  machine 
gun  in  my  guts  and  said  *yes  you  will,'  "  he  agreed  to 
carry  the  message. 

True  also  told  of  overhearing  a  telephone  con- 
versation between  Birger  and  Adams,  in  which  Bir- 
ger told  the  corpulent  mayor  he  was  coming  over  to 

64 


get  him.  He  said  Adams  protested,  asking  Birger 
what  it  was  all  about  and  urging  him  to  ''let's  fix  this 
up." 

As  True  related  the  incident  when  Birger's 
machine  gun  changed  his  mind  about  carrying  Birger's 
message,  Birger  laughed  with  the  crowd,  evidently 
appreciating  as  much  as  anyone  the  situation  in 
which  True  told  of  having  been  placed. 

Gus  Adams  told  of  Birger  and  his  men  visiting 
the  Adams  home  one  day  and  with  a  gang  of  men 
keeping^Adams  covered  with  rifles  cursed  the  mayor 
and  said  they  would  kill  him. 

Mrs.  Marshall  Jones,  a  tall,  straight  w^oman  who 
sat  stiffly  in  the  witness  chair  despite  her  61  years, 
held  the  courtroom  motionless  for  thirty  minutes  while 
she  told  of  the  slaying  of  Adams,  her  son.  She  was 
in  the  Adams  home  w^hen  the  mayor  was  shot  down 
at  his  front  door. 

Her  story  was  one  of  fear.  She  told  of  spending 
the  night  of  December  11  at  the  Adams  home  in 
company  with  her  husband,  their  daughter,  Adams, 
his  wife  and  their  daughter.  They  sat  up  all  night 
she  said,  because  they  were  afraid  to  go  to  sleep. 

''Joe"  had  been  threatened  by  Birger,  the  bad 
man  from  Harrisburg. 

When  dawn  came  they  felt  relieved  and  Joe  and 
his  father-in-law  lay  down  to  sleep.  "Joe"  had  been 
ill  and  spent  the  day  in  bed,  although  he  did  not  un- 
dress.   The  day  was  uneventful  until  4  p.  m. 

Then  there  was  a  knock  at  tlie  door,  and  her 
daughter-in-law  answered  it.  Tw^o  young  men  with  a 
note  were  outside.  They  asked  for  Adams  and  he 
was  called  out  to  see  them.  "Joe  said  something  to 
them,"  Mrs.  Jones  said  haltingly.  "I  didn't  catch  what 

65 


it  was.  Then  he  started  to  read  the  note.  When  he 
took  his  eyes  off  them  they  shot  him.''  ''Joe  fell  and 
they  ran." 

Mrs.  Jones  said  that  the  mayor  was  a  man  hound- 
ed by  enemies  against  whom  he  had  shown  no  cause 
for  enmity  and  forced  to  sit  up  at  night  to  guard  his 
home.  Much  pity  for  the  elderly  lady  was  shown  as 
she  tendered  the  last  statement  regarding  the  passing 
of  the  mayor  of  West  City. 

When  word  was  received  in  Franklin  county  of  the 
confession  of  Elmer  Kane  who  said  he  bombed  the 
Birger  roadhouse  from  the  air.  State's  Attorney 
Boswell  of  Williamson  county  wired  the  officials  in 
Iowa  who  were  holding  Kane  to  relea^se  him.  Boswell 
said  he  was  not  worrying  who  bombed  the  hut  and 
would  not  play  into  the  hands  of  the  defense  in 
Franklin  county.  Boswell  said  that  if  he  wanted  to 
question  Kane  they  would  pick  him  up  again  after 
the  trial  in  Benton  was  over. 

Rado  Millich's  attorneys  at  this  time  were  work- 
ing hard  to  raise  more  funds  to  carry  an  appeal  to 
the  supreme  court  for  Millich.  If  this  should  fail 
Millich  was  to  hang  on  October  24,  1927,  a  year  from 
the  time  he  killed  Ward  Jones. 

Attorney  Robert  E.  Smith,  chief  counsel  for  Bir- 
ger and  his  former  henchmen's  defense,  only  July  18, 
tried  to  weaken  the  evidence  of  the  state  by  a  rapid 
cross  examination  of  David  Garrison. 

Garrison,  a  youth  doing  time  at  the  reformatory 
at  Pontiac,  told  from  the  witness  stand  of  an  attempt 
on  the  part  of  Birger  to  hire  him  and  Alva  Wilson  to 
"go  to  the  door  of  a  West  City  man  and  shoot  him." 

Garrison  told  a  clean-cut  story  of  the  incident  on 
the  occasion  of  one  of  four  visits  to  Shady  Rest, 

66 


where  he  stopped,  the  witness  said,  to  **get  a  shot  of 
liquor."  Garrison  said  Birger  told  the  boys  he  had  a 
plan  for  them  to  make  some   easy  money. 

"What  do  you  think  I  am — a  damn  fool,"  Garrison 
said  he  replied  to  Birger's  offer  of  $100  for  the  kill- 
ing." 

Smith  opened  with  rapid  fire  thrusts.  "You  are  a 
member  of  the  Shelton  gang,  aren't  you,"  he  tore  into 
the  witness  that  brought  back  a  line  of  rapid-fire  re- 
sponses from  the  witness. 

"You  were  driving  a  stolen  car  when  you  went  to 
Shady  Rest,  weren't  you  ?"  Smith  shouted  at  Garrison. 

"Yes,"  the  witness  shot  back,  without  a  sign  of  un- 
easiness. 

"How  do  you  know  that  it  was  on  December  8  that 
Charlie  Birger  made  you  the  offer  which  you  have 
just  told?" 

"Because  I  pulled  a  job  at  Albion  the  next  night, 
and  got  caught.      That  is  why  I  am  at  Pontiac." 

The  witness  did  not  deviate  from  his  story  during 
the  grilling  cross-examination.  Alva  Wilson  told  the 
same  story  as  Garrison  of  the  offer  made  by  Birger. 
He  told  Birger  he  would  steal  (but  not  kill. 

On  July  19,  1927,  Harry  Thomasson,  star  state 
witness,  was  called  to  the  witness  stand.  He  took 
the  stand  after  a  delayed  conference  of  defense  attor- 
neys and  admitted  killing  Adams  for  Birger.  He  told 
the  story  as  Newman  and  others  against  Birger  told 
it.    The  state  expected  to  finish  their  case 'soon  after. 

The  testimony  of  Harry  Thomasson,  the  killer  of 
Adams,  was  the  most  damaging  of  the  entire  group 
of  witnesses  for  the  state.  As  his  story  progressed 
the  judge  had  deputies  move  near  him  and  the  very 
tenseness  of  the  court  room  could  be  felt.    As  he  told 

67 


his  story  there  was  a  silence  so  still'  as  to  be  almost 
audible.  He  went  through  the  entire  story  without  a 
quiver  and  when  cross  examined,  did  not  falter  at  any 
time.  It  seemed  as  if  the  noose  was  drawing  near  to 
Birger,  Hyland  and  Newman.  The  testimony  of 
Thomasson  was  damaging  to  all  three     defendants. 

Following  the  testimony  of  Thomasson,  Sheriff 
Pritchard  and  other  witnesses  testified  and  the  state 
rested  its  case.  Defense  attorneys  were  at  a  loss,  it 
seemed,  to  decide  what  they  would  do.  The  court  was 
surprised  when  defense  attorneys  asked  for  a  new 
jury.    This  appeal  was  denied  them. 

The  gangland  trio  it  was  rumored  would  take  the 
stand  in  their  own  defense.  Then  came  the  startling 
episode.  Defense  attorneys  came  forward  with  the 
statement  that  the  defendants  would  not  take  the 
stand  nor  would  any  other  witness  for  them  take  the 
stand.  The  defense  attorneys  said  they  would  argue 
the  case  with  the  state  attorneys,  make  their  pleas 
and  leave  the  rest  to  the  jury.  The  general  public 
thought  the  noose  much  nearer  to  the  gangsters.  The 
case  was  then  rested. 

The  statement  of  Newman,  that  he  would  not  tesi- 
fy  came  as  a  surprise.  His  decision  caused  expressions 
of  astonishment  on  the  faces  of  Birger  and  Hyland. 
Then  came  the  decision  that  none  of  them  or  their 
witnesses  would  testify. 

Following  the  decision  of  the  three  defendants  not 
to  take  the  witness  stand  in,  their  own  defense  the  at- 
torneys for  both  sides  made  their  concluding  pleas. 
The  attorneys  for  the  defense  pleaded  for  mercy  and 
tried  to  lessen  the  weight  of  the  evidence  given  by 
star  state  witnesses. 

State's  Attorney  Roy  Martin  and  his  assistant 

68 


pleaded  for  the  death  sentence  for  the  three  defend- 
ants. The  plea  made  by  Martin  was  a  great  one  and 
following  it  the  judge  instructed  the  jury  and  it  retir- 
ed to  the  jury  room  for  a  verdict.  The  jury  seemed 
indifferent  all  the  way. 

CHAPTER  15. 

Chapter  15  Deals  with  the  Result  of  the  Trial  of  Birger, 

Hyland  and  Newman. 

After  deliberating  22  1-2  hours,  the  jury  in  the 
Adams  mudrer  trial  at  Benton,  111 ,,  returned  their  ver- 
dict to  Judge  Charles  H.  Miller. 

Charlie  Birger  was  sentenced  to  hang  for  the 
crimxe,  being  found  guilty  by  the  jury  and  his  punish- 
ment fixed  at  death.  He  took  the  sentence  stoically 
and  seemed  little  perturbed.  However,  his  sister  show- 
ed signs  of  emotion. 

Ray  Hyland  was  also  found  guilty  of  the  charge 
and  his  sentence  fixed  at  imprisonment  for  the  rest 
of  his  natural  life.  He  seemed  little  shaken  and 
was  evidently  glad  that  he  was  not  to  be  hanged.  A 
woman  in  the  court  room  said  he  was  her  son  who 
had  been  missing  for  years.  She  went  into  hysterics 
when  the  sentence  was  read.  Hyland  turned  pale 
but  said  nothing. 

Art  Newman  received  the  same  punishment  as 
Hyland,  life  imprisonment.  He  showed  little  concern 
over  the  verdict.  The  general  public  was  pleased  with 
the  verdict.  Attorneys  for  the  defense  said  they 
vrould  appeal  the  case  for  new  trial  and  if  not 
granted  would  go  to  the  state  supreme  court. 

When  the  case  went  to  the  jury  Hyland  said  to 
Birger,  "The  end  is  near,"  and  Birger  affirmed  the 

69 


jstatement  with  a  nod  of  his  head.  Hyland  then  said, 
**It  looks  like  a  necktie  party  for  someone."  Birger 
remained  silent. 

After  the  verdict  and  sentences  were  read  it  was 
learned  that  at  one  time  the  jury  was  in  favor  of 
death  for  all  three  with  the  exception  of  two  votes, 
the  vote  being  10  to  2.  The  decision  that  all  three 
defendants  were  guilty  was  gained  early.  The  remain- 
der of  the  time  was  given'  to  affixing  the  punishment. 

CHARLIE  BIRGER. 

A  slender  strip  of  a  man,  44  years  old  and  en- 
dowed with  a  magnetic  personality,  has  caused  the 
people  of  the  state  of  .Illinois  more  nights  of  sleepless 
worry  and  the  citizens  of  the  lower  half  of  the  state 
more  damage  than  any  one  individual  has  ever  caused 
a  commonwealth. 

Seemingly  unconscious,  and  at  the  least  unworried 
by  the  turmoil  he  aroused,  he  has  gone  about  his  ne- 
farious mission  of  settling  his  troubles  and  imaginary 
grievances  by  the  enlistment  of  what  he  calls  "a  gang 
of  punks,"  arming  them  with  machine  guns,  placing 
them  in,  armored  cars  and  sending  them  forth  to  defy 
his  enemies  and  the  law. 

But  he  has  come  to  the  end  of  his  rope.  He  had 
gone  as  far  as  he  could.  He  had  finally  discovered  the 
law  is  bigger  than  any  man,  and  that  those  who  come 
or  remain  after  him  will  laugh  at  his  folly  rather  than 
praise  his  daring.  Charlie  Birger  was  done  for — 
after  the  trial  for  the  killing  of  Joe  Adams. 

Where  to  class  Charlie  Birger  is  a  problem  diffi- 
cult for  those  who  know  him  best.  Those  who  did  not 
have  his  personal  acquaintance  could  easily  class  him 

70 


as  a  heartless  killer,  void  of  a  conscience  or  the  least 
regard  as  to  the  value  of  human  life. 

But  acquaintance  with  the  wary  gangster  seems 
to  change  these  opinions  in  a  marked  degree.  Re- 
membering that  he  is  a  hardened  criminal  who  has 
killed  and  robbed  and  looted,  there  is  something  back 
of  it  all  that  tells  one  that  perhaps  somewhere  there 
is  a  good  trait  or  two,  not  enough  to  overshadow  the 
baser  things  if  his  life,  but  something  unexplainable 
that  touches  in  a  spot,  that  will,  if  you  are  not  careful, 
temper  your  opinions. 

This  "unexplainable  something"  has  made  him  a 
leader  of  men.  True  the  men  he  has  led  have  been  a 
type  that  were  of  inferior  breeding  and  intellect,  but 
it  is  not  unreasonable  to  believe  that  if  he  had  directed 
his  mind  and  ability  toward  a  legitimate,  business 
career,  there  is  no  limit  to  the  things  he  might  have 
accomplished. 

But  he  chose  a  different  route.  Some  would  call 
it  the  primrose  poth.  He  elected  to  exert  his  energies 
toward  the  establishment  of  a  little  kingdom  of  his 
own.  He  placed  himself  on  the  throne,  he  named  his 
ministry,  his  captains  and  his  lieutenants  and  declared 
himself  to  the  world. 

Birger,  his  attorneys  say,  was  born  in  or  near 
New  York,  and  came  to  St.  Louis  when  quite  young, 
growing  to  manhood  there.  He  served  in  the  Spanish- 
American  war  and  was  a  pensioner  of  the  United  States 
government,  he  told  newspaper  men. 

He  came  into  Franklin  county  and  landed  in 
Christopher  where  he  was  known  as  a  gambler.  He 
went  to  Harrisburg  where  he  built  up  a  wide  acquaint- 
ance among  gamblers,  bootleggers,  touts  and  criminals. 

71 


Business  men,  professional  men  and  people  of  a  re- 
spectable class  were  his  acquaintances  and  friends. 

His  name  first  came  into  prominence  in  southern 
Illinois,  when  he  ''shot  it  out"  with  Whitey  Doering,  a 
St.  Louis  gangster,  at  a  joint  at  Halfway  in  Williamson 
county.     Doering  died,  but  Birger  recovered. 

While  he  was  fast  to  make  friends  and  acquaint- 
ances, he  made  as  many  enemies.  Me  soon  had  men 
gunning  for  him  and  he  was  gunning  for  them.  But 
those  things  were  little  thought  of.  Those  were  per- 
sonal grudges  of  the  underworld  that  rarely  came 
within  the  pale  of  the  law  until  one  of  the  men  fell  a 
victim  of  the  other's  vengeance. 

Birger  moved  on  in  this  channel.  Gambling  and 
bootlegging,  going  and  coming  in  the  element  with 
which  he  felt  most  at  ease.  People  generally  heard 
but  little  of  him,  and  knew  less. 

Then  he  conceived  the  idea  of  a  chain  of  road 
houses.  He  saw  an  opportunity  to  ''clean  up"  at  booze 
running  and  operating  slot  machines.  He  might  or 
might  not  have  had  some  understanding  as  to  the  kind 
of  protection  he  w^ould  have  from  the  law.  At  any 
rate  he  began  operations. 

He  acquired  a  tract  of  some  sixty  acres  of  land  on 
State  Highway  No.  13,  midway  between  Harrisburg 
and  Marion.  There  he  erected  a  small  barbecue  stand, 
cleared  the  rubbish  and  underbrush  from  a  wooded 
plot  nearby  and  erected  an  enticing  sign  near  the  en- 
trance:    "Sixty  Acres  of  Free  Camping  Ground." 

This  free  camp  came  to  be  the  site  of  the  infamous 
cabin  that  was  known  throughout  the  United  States  as 
"Shady  Rest,"  the  palace  of  King  Birger,  the  capital  of 
gangland — the  eyesore  of  a  nation. 

No  one  will  ever  know  whether  or  not  it  v*'as 

72 


Charlie  Birger's  plan  to  raise  an  army  and  declare  a 
state  of  gang  war  when  he  laid  out  that  camp  site  and 
built  his  cabin. 

He  might  have  only  had  an  idea  of  a  place  to 
make  his  headquarters  for  his  chain  of  road  houses. 
Or  he  might  have  had  in  mind  just  the  thing  that 
resulted — a  stronghold  and  fortress  where  he  could 
surround  himself  with  gunmen  and  issue  his  defiance 
of  the  law. 

Birger,  luring  the  days  following  his  first  arrest, 
talked  freely  of  gangland,  and  his  version  then  of 
what  constitutes  a  gangster  leaves  the  intimation  that 
he  has  a  certain  horror  for  the  warriors  in  his  army, 
detesting  their  criminal  instincts,  but  yet  catering  to 
their  whims  so  that  he  might  use  them  to  whatever 
advantage  he  saw  fit. 

"A  man  who  will  get  into  a  gang  is  just  a  no-good 
punk,'*  Birger  said  then.  '"The  men  who  came  to  me 
were  ignorant,  uneducated,  lowbred  scum.  If  they 
hadn't  been  like  this  they  would  never  have  been 
gangsters." 

Then  there  is  another  question.  What  drew  these 
men  to  Birger?  His  personality  of  leadership  prob- 
ably had  its  part  and  the  desire  to  be  a  **bad  man"  like 
Birger,  drew  some.  Others  came  for  protection  from 
the  law,  and  some  saw  possibilities  of  easy  money  and 
little  work. 

Women  had  their  part  in  helping  to  recruit  the 
Birger  army  when  some  bitter  rival  made  it  so  hot  for 
the  man  who  was  winning  the  affection  of  his  "sweet 
mama"  that  the  protection  of  the  cabin  was  paid  for 
by  tl)e  sacrfice  of  the  rights  a  man  has  to  call  his  soul 
his  own. 

Rival  gangsters  drove  others    to  the  protecting 

73 


portals  of  Birger's  cabin,  and  each  new  day  saw  some 
new  face  within  the  circle  of  men  who  banded  them- 
selves together  by  a  code  of  the  underworld. 

The  daily  and  nightly  parades  of  armored  cars 
and  highpowered  motor  cars  bearing  every  implement 
of  modern  warfare  led  thru  a  half  dozen  southern 
Illinois  counties.  Pillaging,  burning,  robbing,  killing, 
the  gang  went  on,  gaining  in  power  and  offering  a 
new  red-lettered  page  for  the  history  of  Little  Egypt 
for  each  new  day. 

Driven  to  the  protection  of  Birger,  Art  Newman, 
former  friend  of  the  Shelton  gang,  came  to  be  one  of 
the  trusted  lieutenants  at  Shady  Rest.  The  diminutive 
soldier  of  fortune  who  resents  the  name  ^'Gangster," 
was  a  crack  crapshooter,  gambler,  high-powered  boot- 
legger and  whiskey  runner,  before  he  took  up  with  the 
Shady  Rest  outfit. 

He  admitted  his  shrewdness  with  the  dice  and  is 
believed  to  have  harbored  the  secret  ambition  of  some 
day  leading  a  mutiny  that  would  place  him  on  the 
throne  of  Birger. 

Any  way  he  went  along.  He  helped  in  the  plan- 
ning and  the  execution  of  big  and  little  jobs  and  as  a 
result  he  was  picked  up  and  tried  with  Birger  for  the 
murder  of  Joe  Adams.  He  blames  his  luck  and  pleads 
the  story  of  Old  Dog  Tray  for  having  landed  in  the 
"clutches  of  this  horrible  gang."    But  he  is  there. 

Ray  Hyland  came  to  Birger's  hut,  more  as  a  lark 
or  adventure.  He  didn't  know  what  he  wanted  to  do, 
nor  didn't  care  much.  He  was  a  happy-go-lucky,  care- 
free man  who  had  nothing  at  stake  and  was  willing  to 
take  what  came. 

They  called  him  "Izzy  the  Jew,"  but  he  tells  you  he 
is  no  more  Jew  than  Irish,  and  laughs  it  off.    They 

74 


wanted  him  to  drive  the  Thomasson  boys  to  the  scene 
of  the  Joe  Adams  murder,  and  he  did.  Perhaps  he  was 
compelled  to  do  this  to  save  his  own  hide,  or  perhaps 
he  displayed  a  willingness  to  have  a  part  in  the 
"bumping  off"  of  the  corpulent  West  City  Mayor. 

The  murder  committed  in  Franklin  county  was 
the  beginning  of  the  end.  The  threats  that  the  **damn- 
ed  little  Franklin  county  law"  couldn*t  keep  them  from 
kilHng  Joe  Adams  proved  true  enough.  But  that 
same  little  law  has  put  a  stop  to  their  further  mur- 
derous activities  for  all  time  to  come. 

They  made  one  false  step  too  many.  They  failed 
to  reckon  with  Roy  Martin,  later  heralded  as  the  state's 
most  fearless  prosecutor.  Martin  answered  their  dare 
with  a  warrant  that  held  Birger  for  the  death  of 
Adams  because  someone  testified  at  an  inquest  that 
they  knew  of  Birger  making  threats  against  Adams. 

Anxious  days  passed  and  after  overcoming  many 
obstacles  thrown  in  his  way.  Sheriff  James  Pritchard 
succeeded  in  landing  King  Charlie  in  the  Benton  jail. 
At  that  time  it  would  have  been  a  weak  case,  but  Mar- 
tin was  not  satisfied  to  go  before  a  jury  with  that 
evidence — that  is  not  his  style. 

He  began  a  more  thorough  investigation.  With 
the  big  chief  in  jail  people  talked  more  and  more.  They 
were  less  afraid  of  his  machine  gun  and  his  armored 
truck.  Slender  threads  were  picked  up  here  and 
there  by  the  prosecutor  and  before  long,  and  before 
anyone  was  aware  of  what  was  going  on,  a  new  grand 
jury  had  been  called,  a  new  indictment  had  been  re- 
turned, and  Birger,  who  had  been  liberated  under 
bonds  in  the  sum  of  $42,000  on  the  first  charge  was 
picked  up  again,  before  he  knew  what  was  coming. 

He  was  placed  in  jail  again.    Then  his  jet  black 

75 


hair  began  to  turn  grey.  More  of  his  confederates 
started  talking  and  the  net  tightened  inch  by  inch  on 
up  until  the  time  of  the  trial,  when  the  mass  of  evi- 
dence piled  up  by  the  **damned  little  Franklin  county 
law"  proved  too  great  for  him  to  attempt  to  overcome 
by  offering  any  evidence  in  his  own  defense. 

Newman  hasn't  stood  hitched  since  he  has  been  in 
the  toils  of  the  law.  He  has  told  a  lot  of  things  on  his 
former  chief  and  would  probably  have  told  more  on  the 
witness  stand  if  he  had  not  been  afraid  that  Birger 
would  have  unloaded  on  him. 

It  has  been  different  with  Hyland.  He  has  never 
had  the  happy-go-lucky,  devil-may-care  smile  taken 
from  his  face.  He  has  joked  with  reporters  about  the 
probability  of  his  having  his  neck  stretched,  but  he 
did  not  break  with  his  chief.  He  offered  his  neck 
as  a  target  for  the  hangman's  noose  if  it  be  necessary. 

In  the  words  of  his  attorney  who  pleaded  for 
mercy  in  his  closing  arguments  to  the  jury:  "He  is 
willing  to  die  with  those  who  have  been  his  friends.'' 

Since  the  arrest  of  Birger  his  gang  has  scattered 
and  gone.  Many  of  the  members  are  too  in  the  toils  of 
the  law,  and  most  of  the  others  are  fugitives  from  jus- 
tice. The  army  that  stood  by  him  in  his  defiance  of 
the  law  has  left  him  like  rats  leaving  a  sinking  ship. 

Freddie  Wooten,  Riley  Simmons,  Rado  Millich, 
Danny  Brown,  Harry  Thomasson,  Clarence  Rone,  Har- 
vey Dungy,  Art  Newman,  Ray  Hyland  and  Birger 
himself  have  all  felt  the  arm  of  the  law,  and  have 
either  been  sentenced  or  are  awaiting  trial  for  some 
crime  or  another. 

Steve  George,  Elmo  Thomasson,  Ward  Jones, 
Shag  Worsham  and  Jimmy  Stone  have  been  knocked 

76-^ 


off  and  their  deaths  are  being  cleared  up  by  the  de- 
velopments following  the  arrests  of  gangmen. 

Connie  Ritter,  Frankie  Schorer,  Leslie  Simpson, 
Jack  Crews,  Oklahoma  Slim,  Ernest  Balleau  and  others 
of  lesser  importance  are  at  this  time  in  July,  1927,  still 
at  large. 

Charlie  Birger  is  regarded  by  some  as  a  shrewd 
man,  but  he  has  not  demonstrated  it.  With  the  cun- 
ning he  has  displayed  in  dominating  the  gangsters  of 
his  realm,  he  surely  knew  that  he  could  not  go  on  for- 
ever defying  every  law  known  to  man. 

Was  he  too  engrossed  with  the  idea  of  putting  his 
enemy  gangsters  out  of  the  way  to  take  heed  of  the 
law,  or  was  he  so  enamored  of  his  own  power  that  he 
thought  the  law  would  never  bring  him  to  justice? 

The  way  he  press-agented  his  plans  of  killing  his 
enemy  Carl  Shelton  and  others  who  had  crossed  his 
path  gives  rise  to  the  belief  that  his  insane  desire  to 
spill  human  blood  overpowered  his  faculty  of  reasoning 
that  the  law  would  eventually  have  its  way. 

After  the  Adams  trial  several  papers  stated  that 
attorneys  for  the  three  defendants  said  that  the  gang- 
sters admitted  to  them  that  they  were  guilty.  The 
attorneys  and  gangsters  denied  every  bit  of  it. 

CHAPTER  16. 

Conclusion  Telling  of  Sentence   of   Birger.      Reward 
Offered  for  Connie  Ritter. 

Judge  Miller  denied  Birger  another  trial  in  the 
circuit  court  and  sentenced  him  to  hang  on  October  15, 
1927.  Birger's  only  hope  left  was  an  appeal  to  the 
supreme  court  of  Illinois. 

77 


Following  is  the  sentence  placed  on  Birger  by  the 

court : 

**It  is  the  sentence  of  the  Court  that  you,  Charlie 
Birger,  between  the  hours  of  10  o'clock  in  the  forenoon 
and  2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  on  Saturday,  the  fifteen- 
th day  of  October,  be  hanged  by  the  neck  until  dead, 
and  may  God  have  mercy  on  your  soul." 

These  remarks  by  the  Court  prompted  Birger  to 
change  his  mind  and  make  a  statement.  His  state- 
ment will  follow  shortly  in  another  paragraph,  conclud- 
ing this  narrative  of  the  greatest  gangster  known  in 
southern  Illinois  and  one  of  the  greatest  the  United 
States  has  ever  known. 

Along  about  this  time,  late  in  July,  1927,  the  law 
in  Franklin  county  renewed  its  search  for  Connie  Rit- 
ter,  also  indicted  for  the  murder  of  Joe  Adams.  Ritter, 
it  was  rumored,  had  gone  south  and  then  had  crossed 
the  ocean  into  Europe.  Ritter  was  the  "sporty  guy"  of 
the  Birger  gang  and  was  paymaster  for  Birger.  He 
was  said  to  have  paid  the  Thomasson  boys  and  Ray 
Hyland  for  their  part  in  the  Adams  murder. 

The  supervisors  of  Franklin  county  offered  a  re- 
ward of  $1,000  for  the  arrest  of  Ritter.  He  was  also 
a  figure  in  the  murder  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Price  of  Mar- 
ion, it  was  rumored. 

When  Judge  Charles  H.  Miller  sentenced  Birger 
he  made  a  very  beautiful  speech  to  the  gang  leader  and 
following  it  and  the  reading  of  the  sentence  Birger 
made  a  five  minute  talk  to  the  court. 

Following  is  the  court  reporter's  record  of  Char- 
lie Birger's  remarks  to  court  upon  being  sentenced  to 
death : 

"Your  Honor,  that  was  a  very  nice  talk  and  I  have 

78 


listened  to  you.    You  have  the  impression  on  your  mind 
that  I  wanted  to  be  chief. 

"When  I  was  marked  up  to  be  killed  since  eight 
men  drove  up  in  a  Cadillac  automobile  and  were  look- 
ing for  me,  and  asked  for  Charlie  Birger. 

"I  called  on  the  state's  attorney  for  protection; 
and  called  in  Staters  Attorney  Boswell,  of  Williamson 
county  for  protection  and  also  on  the  Sheriff  of  Sa- 
line county  for  protection.  I  was  by  myself  and  had 
to  go  out  and  get  three  negroes  to  help  protect  me. 

"It  never  was  in  my  heart  to  kill  anybody.  I  want 
the  public  to  get  a  different  impression  on  it.  I  wanted 
to  keep  down  the  robbing  and  stealing.  I  took  care  of 
the  boys  around  there — my  meat  bill  ran  from  $130 
to  $140  a  month. 

*'This  man  Newman,  I  wouldn't  believe  at  all. 
There  is  a  man  that  was  the  cause  of  a  woman's  death. 
For  myself  I  don't  care — ^just  for  my  two  children. 

"Mr.  Martin  cannot  deny  that  I  called  on  him  for 
protection. 

"I  laid  out  in  the  weeds  for  nights  and  days — at 
one  time  for  seven  days  and  nights  I  did  not  have  my 
clothes  off.  It  was  never  in  my  heart  to  be  chief,  or  to 
kill  anybody.  I  don't  want  to  kill.  There  is  a  man, 
John  Rogers,  that  came  to  my  house.  Him  and  New- 
man has  conspired  and  condemned  me.  If  I  had  been 
on  the  jury  trying  any  man  in  this  courthouse,  I  would 
have  given  anybody  else  the  same  verdict  the  jury 
gave  me.  Mr.  Martin  knowns  down  in  that  evidence 
that  lots  of  it  was  framed  up.  I  never  did  make  any 
confession.    I  have  been  shut.    I  haven't  said  anything. 

"There  is  a  woman,  Mrs.  Newman  that  was  the 
cause  of  Mrs.  Price's  death.  I  will  tell  you  more  of  it 
and  tell  you  who  killed  those  people.    As  far  as  the 

79 


cabin  that  was  blown  up.  I  was  in  Dowell  and  this 
was  the  first  man  (points  to  Newman)  that  brought 
this  news  to  me.  I  know  who  bio  wed  up  the  cabin- 
two  men  and  two  women  that  stayed  at  Mt.  Vernon, 
the  night  the  cabin  was  blown  up.  I  will  give  Martin 
credit  for  one  thing — ^that  he  has  brought  justice.  I 
don't  want  to  go  down  in  history  and  be  blamed  for  it. 
The  night  that  Price  was  killed  I  can  prove  this  man 
Newman  was  intoxicated  and  throwed  a  gun  on  me. 
I  can  prove  all  this.  He  was  not  scared  of  men,  or  no 
other  man.  I  was  in  Herrin  with  him  one  time  and  he 
took  nine  guns  from  60  men.  He  was  as  busy  as  a 
bumble  bee  in  that  crowd  and  came  to  me  and  handed 
me  the  nine  guns.  I  can  prove  that  by  20  people.  I 
don't  want  to  go  down  in  history  as  a  chief.  After  I 
was  marked  to  die,  Carl  Shelton  and  I  got  together 
and  shook  hands.  I  don't  want  any  sympathy  because 
I  did  not  leave  the  country — ^that  is  the  mistake  I  am 
going  to  pay  for." 

THE  END 

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